At least 10 people, including two members of the security forces, were killed in an attack on a truck convoy on Thursday in northwestern Pakistan, the scene of clashes between Sunnis and Shiites, local police said today.
Police said that despite a ceasefire between Sunni and Shiite Muslims signed on January 1, a convoy of trucks was "targeted by gunfire" in the Kourram district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, which borders Afghanistan.
Main roads in the area have been closed in an attempt to contain the violence, the source said.
"There are reports of five to six drivers being kidnapped by a local tribe," a senior police official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The "convoy of 35 trucks" was carrying basic food items - such as rice, flour, oil - and medicines from the mainly Sunni south of Kourram towards the mainly Shiite north, the source said.
“After the attack, 21 trucks left the area, but others remained trapped” and “there was intense gunfire in two other locations,” he added.
This was the third convoy of trucks to attempt to reach the enclave since January 1. Since violence resumed between the communities in July, several truces have been announced and authorities on each side are working to reach a lasting agreement in this former tribal area, where codes of honor are strong and local authorities and security forces are struggling to enforce their laws.
At least 222 people have been killed in the Kourram district, according to various sources, since the resumption of hostilities.
