PESHAWAR/KURRAM: Officials reported that a convoy of passenger vehicles was ambushed in Lower Kurram on Thursday, killing at least 39 people, including seven women and a nine-year-old kid, and injuring 28 more. They are concerned that the death toll could increase.
The Mandori Charkhel region, which has a history of land conflicts and sectarian tensions, is where the incident took place.
The convoy, which had about 200 vehicles, was traveling from Parachinar to Peshawar when it was heavily shot at, according to Deputy Commissioner Javedullah Mehsood. While 16 passengers were taken to Tehsil Hospital Alizai, 12 injured passengers—two of them were women—were moved to Combined Military Hospital (CMH) Tall.
According to sources, the attack, which happened at approximately 1:20 pm, seemed to be reprisal for an attack on October 12 that killed 15 people, including two women and a kid. Given the high level of tension in the tribal territory, local leaders voiced worry that the situation would worsen.
Two distinct convoys of Shia passengers were the target of two strikes, Mr. Mehsood told the AFP news agency. “In both incidents, there were about ten attackers who fired randomly from both sides of the road,” he stated.
Immediately, no group took credit for the incident.
“A five-minute shooting session”
Among those assaulted was Ajmeer Hussain, who was treated at a nearby hospital.
Mr. Hussain, a 28-year-old victim receiving treatment at a nearby hospital, told AFP, “I started reciting my prayers when gunfire suddenly erupted, thinking these were my final moments.”
I reclined at the feet of the two travelers seated next me. They were both hit by several rounds and passed away right away,” he continued. “The gunfire continued for roughly five minutes.”
Conflicts between communities over land ownership have long been a source of sectarian bloodshed in the Afghan bordering Kurram area.
To settle the issue, the government had already established a land commission. The administration has not yet made the report public, citing sectarian sensitivities, despite the fact that the commission has apparently submitted its conclusions.
The banned terrorist organization Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which has recently been active in Lower Kurram, is also suspected of being involved, which has caused villagers to become alarmed. However, government officials ruled out sectarian motivations and blamed the event on the ongoing land dispute.
Jalal Bangash, a tribal leader of the Tori Bangash tribes, urged authorities to evacuate stranded travelers right now and take action to protect the injured.
Both Mr. Bangash and Allama Tajammal Hussain denounced the assault, emphasizing that despite earlier attempts at peace, like as a large-scale local march from Parachinar to Islamabad, state institutions had failed to secure transportation lines.
PM and CM denounce the event
“The enemies of peace in the country have attacked a convoy of innocent citizens, an act that amounts to sheer brutality,” Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said in a statement condemning the attack.
The incident was also denounced by Chief Minister Ali Amin Khan Gandapur and Governor Faisal Karim Kundi of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
According to a statement from the Chief Minister’s Secretariat, Mr. Gandapur directed the creation of a provincial highway police unit to safeguard transit routes and the reactivation of a jirga to de-escalate the dispute.
Senior officials, legislators, and provincial ministers were also instructed by the chief minister to visit the region and provide a thorough report.
He instructed all pertinent institutions to endeavor toward reestablishing calm in the area and promised that those behind the attack would be held accountable.
“Criminal silence”
The incident was strongly condemned by religious and political figures. The attack on defenseless bystanders prompted a period of grief and countrywide protests, according to Majlis Wahdat-i-Muslimeen (MWM).
MWM General Secretary Syed Nasir Abbas Shirazi and other party officials criticized the federal and provincial administrations for their failure to safeguard citizens during a press conference held at the National Press Club in Islamabad. He specifically criticized the ineffectiveness of security institutions, CM Gandapur, and federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi.
Over fifty individuals have been martyred. We denounce the interior minister’s criminal silence,” he continued. “The ruling class wants to govern this nation at our blood’s expense.”
“Shia-Sunni conflict is not the issue here. “Law enforcement agencies bear the responsibility for the blood of these innocent passengers,” he stated.
Maulana Fazlur Rehman, the leader of Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F), also conveyed his sadness over the murders. He bemoaned their incapacity to uphold law and order in a statement, calling the episode a failure of federal and provincial administrations, institutions, and law enforcement organizations.
“Terrorism is not under control now, but decisions to launch operations are made every day,” he stated.
