Sectarian attack in Kohistan killed 18 Shia passengers and prompted nationwide protests demanding protection for Pakistan's Shia minority.
Key Facts
- Date of attack
- 28 February 2012
- Victims executed
- 18 people
- Shia victims
- 17 of 18 people
- Children among dead
- 3 children
- Attackers (approx.)
- 12 militants in military uniforms
- Responsible group
- Jundallah (linked to Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan)
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Jundallah, a banned terrorist organization affiliated with the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, targeted Shia Muslims in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Sectarian tensions between Sunni militant groups and the Shia minority had been escalating in Pakistan, with Shia travellers particularly vulnerable on intercity routes.
On 28 February 2012, approximately 12 militants dressed in military uniforms stopped multiple buses in Kohistan District. They removed 18 passengers, verified their Shia identity through interrogation, and executed them. Seventeen victims were Shia residents of Gilgit–Baltistan; one Sunni man was killed after failing to prove he was not Shia. Three of the dead were children.
Jundallah claimed responsibility for the massacre. The attack triggered nationwide protests by Pakistan's Shia community, with demonstrators demanding the arrest of perpetrators and enhanced security protections for the Shia minority in the Sunni-majority country.