More than 80 people, including women, children, and police officers, were martyred on Thursday in two sectarian attacks targeting Shia Muslims in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
Armed groups ambushed two separate convoys in Kurram district, firing indiscriminately at travelers, according to senior official Javed ullah Mehsud.
“Ten attackers opened fire from both sides of the road,” said Mehsud, adding that the attacks injured 29 others. Each convoy, comprising over 40 vehicles, was under police escort.
According to media reports, survivors, including women and children, sought refuge in nearby houses as authorities launched a manhunt for the perpetrators.
The province has witnessed a surge in sectarian violence in recent months.
In a related development in Afghanistan, the BBC, citing Afghan sources in Baghlan province, reported that unidentified armed individuals attacked a shrine in Nahrin district last night, killing several Sufi worshippers engaged in prayer.
According to ToloNews, more than 10 people were killed in the incident. So far, no group has claimed responsibility for the attack, and the Taliban government has not issued any statement regarding the attack.
Earlier this week, Pakistani authorities said that over 20 soldiers were killed in separate incidents, with responsibility claimed by militant groups Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Hafiz Gul Bahadur’s faction.
Both groups, linked to the Afghan Taliban, have intensified activities since the Taliban regained power in Kabul in 2021, escalating unrest along Pakistan’s border regions.
