KURRAM: Four people lost their lives and four others sustained injuries in Pewar Sharam Khail area Parachinara Kurram district on Wednesday morning.
According to initial reports, the victims were local residents who had ventured into the mountains to collect firewood when the unknowingly triggered explosive devices planted along their way. Police officials confirmed that the explosions were caused by landmines, a deadly remnant of past conflicts in the area. District Police Officer (DPO) Habibullah stated that police teams, along with the Bomb Disposal Squad and senior security officials, promptly arrived at the scene to secure the area and assist in the rescue operation.
“The initial investigation indicates that the victims stepped on landmines placed secretly along the trail,” DPO Habibullah said. “We are treating this as a deliberate act of terrorism aimed at disrupting peace in the region.”Eyewitness accounts from the injured survivors paint a harrowing picture of the incident. “We were walking through the forested area when a sudden explosion threw us to the ground,” one of the injured men told local media from his hospital bed. “We didn’t realize the path had been rigged with explosives.”
Local elders and community leaders have condemned the incident in the strongest terms. Describing it as a heinous and cowardly act, they demanded swift action against those responsible. “This tragedy is an attack not only on innocent lives but on the peace we’ve worked hard to restore in this region,” said one elder during a community gathering. The district administration has also expressed concern, calling the incident a conspiracy to destabilize the hard-won peace in Kurram. “This was a calculated act to sabotage the ongoing peace efforts. The people behind this must be unmasked and held accountable,” a spokesperson for the local government said.
Security forces have cordoned off the area and launched a thorough search operation to detect and neutralize any additional explosives. Investigations are ongoing, with intelligence agencies assisting in tracing the origins of the landmines and identifying potential perpetrators.
The attack has raised renewed concerns about the presence of unexploded ordnance and hidden landmines in tribal and border areas, posing a constant threat to civilian lives. Human rights organizations and local leaders have called for a comprehensive demining operation and greater vigilance to prevent such tragedies in the future.
