Gunmen kill 50 in ambush on convoy in Pakistan’s Kurram district – Times of India

ISLAMABAD: At least 50 people, including eight women and five children, were killed and 30 others wounded when gunmen ambushed Thursday a convoy of passenger vehicles in Kurram tribal district of northwestern Pakistan’s restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan.
The attack happened in the remote Ochat area as the convoy, consisting of about 200 vehicles, was traveling from the region’s administrative headquarters Parachinar to Peshawar.
According to provincial spokesman Barrister Saif, the attackers first targeted the convoy’s police escort before firing at the vehicles from both sides. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief secretary Nadeem Aslam Chaudhry said the death toll could rise as the condition of 11 wounded people was critical.
The convoys were carrying members of the Shia community, Kurram’s deputy commissioner Javedullah Mehsud said. Women and children sought refuge in local houses during the assault.
The mountainous Kurram district has a long history of sectarian violence between Sunni and Shia groups. In recent years, it has become a hotspot for attacks by the Pakistan Taliban and Islamic State (IS) terrorists, both of which are vehemently anti-Shia.
Kurram, a region with a large Taliban presence, has seen repeated clashes between Sunni and Shia tribes this year, often tied to land disputes. Violence in July led to an intertribal ceasefire signed on August 2, but tensions reignited in late Sept when 25 people were killed. More violence followed on Oct 12, when 15 people died in another convoy attack, prompting the closure of Kurram’s main highway.
The Thall-Parachinar road had reopened in recent days for limited travel under police protection, but Thursday’s attack demonstrated the fragility of security in the area.
Residents reported a tense atmosphere, with daily activities disrupted by road closures and a mobile internet blackout now in its third month.
Pakistan home minister Mohsin Naqvi condemned the attack on unarmed people, saying: “This past week has been difficult and upsetting. We see a new terrorist assault every day now.”