The death toll increased to 42 after gunmen opened fire on vehicles carrying Shia Muslims in Pakistan’s restive north-west, in one of the region’s deadliest such attacks in recent years.
At least 20 people were wonded in the same incident, reports Guardian.
The attack happened in Kurram, a district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province where sectarian clashes between majority Sunni Muslims and minority Shias have killed dozens of people in recent months.
No one immediately claimed responsibility for the latest attack, whose victims included six women. It came a week after authorities reopened a key highway in the region that had been closed for weeks after deadly clashes.
Local police official Azmat Ali said several vehicles were travelling in a convoy from the city of Parachinar to Peshawar, the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, when the attack began. He said at least 10 passengers were in critical condition at a hospital.
Bd-pratidin English/Lutful Hoque
