At least 40 people, including six women, were killed in a gun attack on Thursday when assailants opened fire on passenger vehicles carrying Shiite Muslims in northwest Pakistan. The deadly assault occurred in the Kurram district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, marking one of the region’s most lethal attacks in recent years.
Local authorities reported that the victims were traveling in a convoy from Parachinar to Peshawar, the provincial capital, when the gunmen launched their assault. In addition to the fatalities, at least 10 passengers were critically injured and taken to a hospital.
Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari strongly condemned the attack, offering condolences to the victims’ families and calling for swift action against those responsible.
Baqir Haideri, a local Shiite leader, expressed outrage over the attack, stating that “the terrorists martyred our innocent people after identifying them.”
The assailants have not yet been identified, and no group has claimed responsibility for the attack. This incident is part of a troubling pattern of violence between Sunni Muslims and the minority Shiite community in Pakistan. Tensions have been rising for years, particularly in areas like Kurram, where sectarian conflict has been ongoing for decades.
In the past week, authorities had just reopened a key regional highway that had been closed for several weeks due to previous deadly clashes. The Shiite community makes up around 15% of Pakistan’s population, and sectarian violence has left many dead over recent years. A violent land dispute in Kurram in July resulted in nearly 50 deaths from clashes between Sunni and Shiite groups.
This attack comes amid rising instability in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan provinces, where authorities are also addressing separatist movements. Earlier this month, a suicide bombing at a train station in Balochistan claimed 26 lives, further fueling the region’s violence. Pakistan’s military continues operations targeting separatist groups and militants, including the Pakistani Taliban and the Baloch Liberation Army.
