Sectarian clashes claim at least 130 lives in Pakistan

At least 130 people were killed in deadly sectarian clashes in Pakistan's northwestern Kurram district in spite of a tentative ceasefire, days after gunmen opened fire on a convoy of vehicles carrying Shia Muslims, local officials said.

- MAROOSHA MUZAFFAR

Kurram, near the border with Afghanistan, has been a flashpoint for sectarian tensions for decades. The tensions spilled over into a fresh wave of attacks last month when clashes between Sunnis and Shias left dozens dead.

District administration official Wajid Hussain said 133 people had been killed in the attacks in the last week and a half. Last week, a convoy travelling from Parachinar to Peshawar was ambushed despite prior threats to Shia in the region in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province – an area with a history of sectarian violence between Sunni and Shia communities.

At least 20 others were also injured in the attack. “The district administration and other relevant authorities have initiated efforts to stop fighting between the two communities but there is no breakthrough yet,” Mr Hussain said.

A Pakistani government team mediated a seven-day ceasefire deal between the rival groups last Sunday. Armed Shia and Sunni Muslims have engaged in tribal and sectarian rivalry for decades over land and other local disputes in Kurram.