PESHAWAR: The government in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province on Wednesday dispatched a convoy of 40 vehicles carrying relief items for the violence-hit Kurram district, an official confirmed, days after an aid convoy en route to the area came under attack.
Five people, including a top administration official, were injured when armed men shot at an aid convoy en route to Kurram district near Bagan, a tense locality in the district, on Saturday. The convoy was stalled as the provincial government vowed stern action against the culprits and their facilitators.
Kurram, a northwestern district of around 600,000 people in the KP province, has been rocked by tribal and sectarian clashes since Nov. 21 when gunmen attacked a convoy of Shia passengers, killing 52. Sporadic clashes since then have killed at least 136 people before the provincial government brokered a ceasefire between the warring tribes last week.
“A convoy of 40 vehicles carrying relief items for Kurram district was sent safely today,” Muhammad Ali Saif, a spokesperson for the KP government, said in a statement.
Saif said a convoy of 10 vehicles had reached Bagan while another comprising 30 vehicles will arrive at Parachinar, the district’s capital, and Upper Kurram “soon.”
“The convoy was sent after successful negotiations with local protesters till late last night,” the spokesperson said.
The violence in the district forced authorities to block a main road connecting Kurram’s main town of Parachinar with the provincial capital of Peshawar, causing medicine, food and fuel shortages in the area.
Saif said more aid convoys will be sent to the district after peace is established there.
The Saturday gun attack took place days after a grand jirga, or council of political and tribal elders formed by the KP provincial government, brokered a peace agreement between the warring Shia and Sunni tribes on Jan. 1, following weeks of efforts.
Under the peace agreement, both sides had agreed on the demolition of bunkers and the handover of heavy weapons to the authorities within two weeks.
It was also decided that land disputes in the volatile district will be settled on a priority basis with the cooperation of local tribes and the district administration.
The agreement said opening of banned outfits’ offices will be prohibited in the district, while social media accounts spreading hate will be discouraged via collective efforts backed by the government.
Pakistan dispatches convoy of 40 aid trucks for violence-hit Kurram district
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Pakistan dispatches convoy of 40 aid trucks for violence-hit Kurram district
- Tribal and sectarian clashes have caused medicine, food and fuel shortages in Kurram district
- Armed men attacked aid convoy en route to Kurram district on Saturday, injuring five persons
Pakistan’s president defends ongoing strikes in Afghanistan, urges Kabul to dismantle militants
- Afghanistan on Thursday launched attacks in retaliation for Pakistani airstrikes the previous Sunday
- Pakistan’s military says it is only targeting Afghan military installations to avoid civilian casualties
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s president on Monday defended his country’s ongoing military strikes in neighboring Afghanistan, saying Islamabad tried all forms of diplomacy before targeting militants operating from Afghan territory, and called on the Taliban government in Kabul to disarm groups responsible for attacks in Pakistan.
Pakistan earlier said it is in “open war” with Afghanistan, alarming the international community. The border area remains a stronghold for militant organizations including Al-Qaeda and the Daesh (Islamic State) group.
“(The Afghan Taliban) must choose to dismantle the terror groups that survive on conflict and its war economy,” Asif Ali Zardari said during a speech to lawmakers, adding that “no state accepts serial attacks on its soil.”
Afghanistan on Thursday launched attacks in retaliation for Pakistani airstrikes the previous Sunday. Since then, Pakistan has carried out operations along the border, with Information Minister Attaullah Tarar claiming the killing of 435 Afghan forces and the capture of 31 Afghan positions.
Kabul has denied such claims.
In Afghanistan, the deputy government spokesman Hamdullah Fitrat said Pakistan’s military fired mortar shells at a refugee camp in eastern Kunar province, killing three children and injuring three others.
Afghanistan’s defense ministry said Afghan forces carried out strikes targeting a Pakistani military facility near Paktia province, causing “substantial losses and heavy casualties.”
Pakistan’s military did not respond to questions. It has said Pakistan is only targeting Afghan military installations to avoid civilian casualties.
Pakistan has witnessed a surge of violence in recent months and blames it on the outlawed Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan or TTP. It operates both inside Pakistan and from Afghan territory.
Islamabad accuses Afghanistan’s Taliban government of providing safe havens for the TTP, which Kabul denies.
The latest cross-border fighting ended a ceasefire brokered by Qatar and Turkiye in October. The two sides failed to reach a permanent agreement during talks in Istanbul.
Zardari reiterated Pakistan’s call for talks, saying, “We have never walked away from dialogue.”
The Pakistani leader again accused Afghanistan of acting as a proxy for India by sheltering militant groups.
“Stop being used by another country as a battlefield for their ambitions,” he said.
Zardari cited a recent report from the United Nations Security Council’s monitoring team that described the presence of militant groups in Afghanistan as an extra-regional threat.
