At least five oil tankers reached Kurram district on Monday, marking the first such consignement since the district was cut off from the rest of the country due to an armed conflict between Sunni and Shia tribes.

Petrol was direly needed in Kurram as people were being forced to commute on foot, even over long distances.

However, the oil tankers had to survive an attack from unknown people to be able to reach the district.

Miscreants opened fire on the oil tankers as they reached Bagan Bazar. However, the drivers managed to drive them to their destination in Alizai.

The tankers reached Kurram as part of a series of convoys carrying food, medicine and other essential items. At least 120 trucks of aid entered the district on Monday, in what is the largest consignment of aid to date.

Bagan, where the oil tankers came under fire on Monday, was also the site of a massive ambush on an aid convoy on January 16. The attack not only resulted in the looting of trucks and deaths of several people including security officials, but also ended up suspending the supply of aid to the beleaguered district.

The attack led the government to carry out a search and clearance operation in four village councils of Lower Kurram to confiscate weapons from miscreants. Aid convoys were then allowed to resume their journey to Kurram under heavy security.