Aid convoy for Parachinar to be sent once conditions normalise: KP govt

• Tal-Parachinar road was reopened after months of tribal clashes.
• Convoy was to deliver wheat, medicines, oil and other vital items.
• Police and Frontier Constabulary were to provide security to convoy. 

PESHAWAR: The aid convoy to restive Kurram district's Parachinar city will be sent once conditions are back to normal, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government's spokesperson Barrister Saif said on Saturday.

The departure of a Parachinar aid convoy, scheduled at 10am today, has been stalled following an attack on Kurram Deputy Commissioner Javedullah Mehsud in the Bagan area earlier today which resulted in five people being wounded along with the DC.

Noting that an assessment was being carried out of the situation in the crisis-hit region, the district administration has said the decision regarding the convoy would be taken after consultations.

The uncertainty surrounding the relief convoy comes against the backdrop of an acute shortage of medicines and other essential items in the district which was declared "disaster hit" last month by the KP government amid tribal clashes which have resulted in over 200 fatalities since July 2024.

The prolonged road closures, attributed to security concerns by the provincial government, have exacerbated the humanitarian crisis faced by Kurram's over 600,000 residents.

A sit-in is also being staged at the Parachinar Press Club calling for the reopening of the roads.

The supplies convoy's scheduled departure — which was to pass through the Tal-Parachinar road — came after the two warring tribes signed a peace agreement on Wednesday aimed at establishing peace.

The 14-point accord provisions the surrendering of weapons as well as the dismantlement of bunkers with a committee set to be constituted within 15 days — to be counted from the day of the signing of the peace deal — to start implementing the agreement.

The successful negotiations, facilitated by the administration, had resulted in a glimmer of hope for the people of Kurram who now once again are faced with ambiguity owing to the latest firing incident.

Following the reopening of the Tal-Parachinar road for the first time after three months, the relief convoy would've delivered essential items such as medicines, oil, wheat, and other food items under tight security provided by the police and the Frontier Constabulary (FC).

Saif, the advisor to the chief minister on information, while talking to the media in Kohat said that by the grace of Allah, everyone’s condition is now stable and out of danger.

He also mentioned that the deputy commissioner was the target of the attack earlier today. "Firing was carried out on the deputy commissioner’s vehicle a short while ago," he added.

The KP CM's aide explained that the unknown assailants' gunfire had resulted in injuries to the deputy commissioner and several law enforcers. "The situation has been managed, and the convoy has been temporarily halted," he noted.

He assured that once the situation normalises, the convoy will be sent to Parachinar. "As soon as the conditions return to normal, the convoy will be sent to Parachinar," Barrister Saif confirmed.

The latest episode of violence comes despite the KP government's warning that aggression in Kurram would be treated as terrorists once the existing bunkers were dismantled.