MANSEHRA, July 13: Thirteen people, nine of them foreign tourists, were wounded in an act of subversion at the nearby historical site of Ashoka Rocks on the Karakoram Highway on Saturday.

A group of 27 foreign tourists left Flashman Hotel in Rawalpindi for China on bus [PA-PA-64]. There were 22 Germans, four Austrians, and one Slovenian.

They stopped in Mansehra to visit the Ashoka Rocks opposite the Brairi Afghan refugee camp. All of a sudden, they were fired upon from two sides. Five women — four Germans and one Austrian — were among those wounded in the attack.

The foreign victims were identified as Hans Muller, Stinet Yougan, Norbekh Faikh, Petriwoski Marget, Rita Miyaloviot, West Houser, Renoton Bonront, Kargael Christine, and Nardin Goard.

Khalid, the watchman of the Ashoka Rocks; two children, Shahid and Aadil; and an unidentified passerby were the other victims. The victims were taken to the DHQ teaching hospital of Mansehra. Later, the foreigners were sent back to Rawalpindi to their guide, Nasim, who did not accompany them.

“I do not know what happened. Maybe it was a gunfire by someone but I didn’t see anyone firing,” Rita told reporters.

The SSP of Mansehra, Syed Ahsan Mahboob, told reporters that the police were trying to contact Nasim for initiating an inquiry into the incident. The SSP did not rule out an act of subversion and said it may be the result of gunfire, throwing of a hand-grenade, or an explosion with dynamite locally used for blasting the rocks.