PESHAWAR: Nine people were killed and seven wounded Thursday when their vehicle hit a landmine in a remote tribal town in northwest Pakistan, local officials said.

The incident occurred in Dol Ragha village in Kurram tribal district, close to the Afghan border, which has been hit by sectarian violence between Sunni and Shiite Muslims.

The victims were heading to the village in a van when their vehicle hit a buried landmine, officials said.
"It was an incident of sectarian violence," local administration official Mumtaz Khan official told AFP by telephone.

BDST 1134 HRS, 09 SEP 2010