Daily Times

WAZIRISTAN:  Police of North Waziristan has issued a security alert for NGO workers after four women NGO workers were shot in the region’s Miran Shah on Monday.

The aid workers were ambushed by two gunmen as they were driving through a village in North Waziristan district, according to local police chief Shafiullah Gandapur, who said just one passenger survived the assault. “No one has claimed responsibility for the attack so far but it was surely an act of terrorism.

Gandapur said the aid workers were affiliated with a programme run by a local institute to develop household skills for women. The incident and death toll was confirmed by Rasul Khan, another local police official.

Separately, Gandapur said in a statement that the driver of the vehicle was also injured in the attack. He added that a search and strike operation was being carried out in the Mirali tehsil of the district to trace and arrest the terrorists.

Soon after the incident, KP Inspector-General of Police Sanaullah Abbasi asked the North Waziristan DPO to submit a report. “Police have been ordered to arrest the suspects immediately. Those involved in the incident will be punished,” the IG said.

Meanwhile, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan issued a statement, condemning the attack and demanding that the perpetrators be brought to book.

The tribal areas along the Afghan border remain notorious for the availability of cheap guns, narcotics and smuggled goods. Attacks have decreased in recent years following a series of military offensives against homegrown and foreign militants.

In 2014, the army launched a massive operation to wipe out militant bases in North Waziristan aimed at ending a near decade-long insurgency that cost thousands of lives. But militant groups are still able to carry out sporadic, isolated assaults. A recent surge in attacks targeting security forces along the Afghan border has sparked fears that these groups may be regrouping.