KURRAM: On Thursday, a convoy of 35 cars delivering food and other necessities to Parachinar, the Kurram district headquarters, was attacked in the Bagan region, resulting in the martyrdom of a security official and the injuries of four others.
Security guards escorting the convoy retaliated by killing six terrorists and injuring ten more. Despite the loss of communication with the drivers of 29 cars, some of them were able to reach Thall in the Hangu area without incident.
Kurram Shaukat Ali, Additional Deputy Commissioner, acknowledged the incident, stating that four soldiers were injured and one soldier was martyred. According to him, the attack damaged three vehicles, and when security forces replied, six militants were killed.
However, the incident happened in the Bagan region as the convoy was traveling to Kurram, according to Hangu Assistant Commissioner Manan Saeed, who spoke to reporters about it. The administration was trying to keep everything under control, he claimed.
The police and district administration said that 35 automobiles had departed Thall city. The caravan was assaulted with rockets and automatic weapons as soon as the first vehicle arrived at the Bagan bazaar.
Rival groups of Talo Kunj and Badshah Kot, as well as Chardeval, Jalmay, Irfani, and Alizai, were firmly set against one another after the incident, according to security sources.
They were concerned that the tragedy would lead to sectarian conflicts in the Kurram again.
Two gunship helicopters also arrived in Bagan later that day.
They stated that seven loaded cars had reportedly been set on fire by militants, who also redirected a few convoy vehicles to the Jarhani area (Lower Kurram near Bagan) for unloading.
According to sources, only one truck carrying commodities made it to safety, while 15 trucks that had been plundered returned to Thall town.
In the meantime, cars from a second convoy that was supposed to be taken to Parachinar were returned to Thall town via the Chapri checkpoint.
Former MNA Pir Haider Ali Shah and other members of the Grand Jirga, which just signed a peace agreement, denounced the occurrence and said that such acts hampered peace efforts.
They brought up the government’s pledge to open routes and act quickly in the event of assaults, which was made at the time of the peace deal. They called on the government to act quickly to bring about enduring peace in the Kurram district. The Kurram district’s residents were also urged by the jirga members to do their share to keep the peace.
This is the second relief convoy to be attacked and the third to be deployed to Parachinar. After being stranded on the Hangu-Kurram border for many days after an attack on January 4 that injured deputy commissioner Kurram Javedullah Mehsud and six others, the first convoy reached the Parachinar on January 8.