DIR – Unidentified gunmen opened fire at guest house of a former provincial minister in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa today and killed at least six people, police said.
Bakht Baidar Khan, former minister and sitting member of provincial assembly, survived the attack as he was not at the guest house at the time of the attack in Lower Dir district. Brother of Khan, who belongs to the opposition Qaumi Watan Party, and a police guard, was among the dead, family sources and the police said. Four people were also wounded in the attack. The gunmen, reportedly wearing military uniform, fled after the shooting. Police sources said that a tribal jirga, or council of elders, was underway at the guesthouse to resolve a dispute between two communities, when the gunmen opened fire, killing four people at the scene. Two later died in hospital.
No group claimed responsibility. However a Taliban Twitter page praised the attackers. Opposition political parties have condemned the attack and demanded investigation into the incident.