10 labourers kidnapped, school torched in Kurram Agency

Officials say around two dozen militants surrounded primary school and burned it down

PESHAWAR: Ten labourers residing in a primary school in Kurram Agency's Sarkai area were kidnapped while the school was burnt down, a senior administration official confirmed to The Express Tribune on Monday.

"There were 10 labourers working on the construction of a road in central Kurram and were residing in the school - they've been missing since then," the official said, adding that they believe “they were kidnapped by militants."

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Initial reports revealed that the incident took place after midnight on Sunday when militants surrounded the primary school and burned it down.

Although many incidents of kidnapping have taken place in the area, the official said this attack seems like it was targeted.

"Most of the laborers are from Karak district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa," the sub-divisional officer in-charge of the construction site said.

"We've compiled a list of the men that have gone missing but there seems to be no information about them," he explained, adding that "the attack seemed to have been planned with at least two dozen armed men, owing to the extent of the damages."

He also confirmed that "a pickup truck and two tractors were turned to ashes by using 1,300 litres of fuel from the construction site."

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The school is located between the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) and Hangu, both which have a high militant presence. Another security official from the area added that several sectarian groups were operating in the area and have kidnapped individuals for ransom in the past.

Officials in the area are reviewing the situation and are yet to determine the exact details of the incident.