Gunmen ambush Pakistan aid convoy despite sectarian truce

Gunmen ambushed a Pakistan convoy travelling to bring aid to a region besieged by sectarian fighting on Saturday, local government said, wounding several officials despite a ceasefire announced three days ago.

The Kurram region of northwest Pakistan has been wracked by Sunni-Shiite violence for decades, but around 200 people have been killed since a fresh bout of fighting broke out in November.

As feuding tribes have battled with machine guns and heavy weapons, the remote and mountainous region bordering Afghanistan has been largely cut off from the outside world.

After a truce was called on January 1, the convoy was attacked while travelling to collect the first delivery of food and medical aid sent by road since November, officials said.

Kurram’s deputy commissioner was wounded “along with two other administration officials, two policemen and two Frontier Corps soldiers”, local government official Motasim Billah told journalists.

He said the attack took place around 11:00am.