Javed Hussain
UPPEAR KURRAM: convoy of 40 vehicles carrying food and other necessities was dispatched to Kurram district on Wednesday after being stalled in Thall for five days, according to government officials.
Clashes stemming from decades-old land disputes have claimed at least 130 lives since November, with food and medicine shortages reported due to weeks-long road blockades.
After months of violence, a peace agreement was signed between the warring sides on January 1. Despite a lull in fighting, the route connecting Parachinar with the rest of the province remained blocked.
However, on Jan 4, a government convoy came under attack near the Bagan area, in which the deputy commissioner of Kurram also sustained injuries. Since then, the convoy had been stranded.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government spokesperson Barrister Muhammad Ali Saif said that 10 of the trucks, meant for the Bagan area, had safely arrived while another convoy of 30 vehicles had arrived in Parachinar and Upper Kurram.
Barrister Saif added that the convoy left after talks with protesters from the Bagan area concluded successfully late on Tuesday.
“More convoys would also be dispatched to the restive district soon.”
He added that the government was consistently taking steps for the relief of the affected population and these convoys were a key part of those efforts.
The negotiations, in which the Grand Jirga, Kurram Peace Committee, and local peace committees played a pivotal role, led to an agreement with local protesters to remove barriers and allow the transportation of relief goods.
