|
The attack happened in Kurram, a district in the northwestern
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province where sectarian clashes between
majority Sunni Muslims and minority Shiites have killed dozens
of people in recent months.
No one has claimed responsibility. The latest violence came a
week after authorities reopened a key highway in the region
after keeping it closed for weeks following deadly clashes.
Local police official Nusrat Hussain said several vehicles
carrying passengers were traveling in a convoy from the city of
Parachinar to Peshawar, the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, when
gunmen opened fire.
He said the dead included a woman, and least 15 passengers were
in a critical condition at a hospital.
Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari condemned the attack and
offered his condolences to the families of the victims. He also
ordered authorities to take action against those who
orchestrated the attack.
Shiite Muslims make up about 15 percent of the 240 million
population of Sunni-majority Pakistan, which has a history of
sectarian animosity between the two communities.
Although they live together largely peacefully in the country,
tensions have existed for decades in some areas, especially in
parts of Kurram, where Shiites dominate.
Nearly 50 people from the two sides were also killed over the
same dispute in July when clashes between Suni and Shiites
erupted in Kurram
Pakistan is also currently carrying out intelligence-based
operations in a separate conflict in northwest and southwestern
Balochistan province, where militants and separatists often
target police, troops and civilians, and the most violence has
been blamed on Pakistani Taliban and an outlawed Baloch
Liberation Army or BLA group.
All contents © copyright 2024 Associated Press. All rights
reserved |
|
