PESHAWAR, Jan 4: The Deputy Commissioner of northwest Pakistan’s restive Kurram district was injured when assailants fired on his convoy on Saturday, days after a peace agreement was reached between two warring parties in the sectarian-violence-hit district.
According to sources, the incident took place in the Kojalai Baba village near Bagan, when residents opened fire on military vehicles, injuring Deputy Commissioner (DC) Kurram Javedullah Mehsud and three security personnel. Mehsud was in the area to review arrangements for an aid convoy to take food items to the district after the main Peshawar-Sadda-Thall-Parachinar road’s opening after 85 days of closure.
Sources said that the firing took place during negotiations between government officials and the protestors who had blocked the main road.
Mehsud was shot thrice and was rushed to a hospital in the Lower Alizai tehsil for treatment.
Three protestors were also injured, official sources said.
“We suspect that local spoilers are involved in the attack,” said a military official.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government spokesperson Barrister Muhammad Ali Saif said that the situation in Kurram is “under control”.
He said all travel and security-related arrangements were in place for the protection of the convoy.
“The DC is undergoing surgery but his condition is out of danger,” said Barrister Saif, who was present at the scene along with the Kohat Commissioner and Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG).
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi and provincial Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur condemned the attack.
Gandapur condemned the firing and sought a report on the incident from senior officials. He wished those injured in the firing a speedy recovery.
“Such an incident after the Kurram peace agreement is highly regrettable and condemnable,” said Gandapur.
“The incident is a deliberate and malicious but ultimately unsuccessful attempt to sabotage the government’s efforts for peace in Kurram,” he said, adding that those involved in the firing will face strict legal action.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Kundi also condemned the incident.
“I pray for the speedy recovery of Deputy Commissioner Kurram Javed Mehsud and others injured,” Kundi said.
“The recurrence of firing incidents on the main highway in Lower Kurram is deeply concerning,” he said, adding that it was a “heinous conspiracy” to sabotage the peace efforts made by the Peace Jirga (council) for lasting harmony in the district.
“For sustainable peace in Kurram District, the positive role of the local population alongside the government is essential,” he said.
A peace agreement was reached on Wednesday between the Alizai and Bagan tribes in the Kurram district in the aftermath of a lethal attack on passenger vans that killed 57 people in northwest Pakistan last month.
Sectarian clashes between the two tribes resulted in the killing of 133 people between November 21 and December 2. (PTI)
Follow our WhatsApp channel
