BAJAUR: A child was killed and seven others suffered injuries when several mortar shells fired from Afghanistan landed in three border areas of Mamond tehsil, in Bajaur district, on Thursday.

Residents and officials of the district administration and police said the incident occurred at about 5pm when mortar shells fired from Afghanistan’s Kunar province hit civilians in Mokha, Gandai and Gali areas, located near the Pak-Afghan border.

They said a child died, while seven people, including Hizbullah, Habib Khan, Dadullah, Tasbeha and Afsa, were seriously wounded.

Soon after the incident, the villagers and personnel of security forces and police immediately rushed to the affected areas and started rescue activities.

The wounded children were taken to the district hospital, Khar, where the condition of some of them was stated to be critical.

The security forces immediately responded to the attack by targeting the suspected places with heavy fire.

The residents of the affected areas, located some 22km northwest of Khar, the headquarters of the district, said that the sudden attack had created fear among them.

They said that the attack had also damaged a number of houses of local residents.

Bajaur had witnessed numerous such attacks form Afghanistan’s Kunar province in the past, killing and injuring a number of local residents.

The last attack occurred on January 19 this year when two mortar shells landed in two border localities of Mamond teshil, destroying two shops.

Meanwhile, deputy commissioner Mohammad Fayyaz Khan, along with senior officials of the district administration and police, visited the district hospital, Khar, to inquire after the health of wounded children.

Mr Khan directed the hospital management to provide better and free of cost treatment to the injured children.

The district administration also sent tents, shelters and edible items to the houses of affected residents in the areas late on Thursday evening.

Meanwhile, people from all walks of life in the district expressed anger over the attack on civilians from Afghanistan.

They said the attack was not only unacceptable but also against the friendly relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan.

They asked the Afghan government to take action against those responsible for the attack to avoid such attacks in future.

Published in Dawn, February 12th, 2021