BAJAUR: Four people were injured when a mortar shell fired from an unidentified direction hit a house in Lowi Mamund tehsil of Bajaur tribal district on Thursday, prompting locals to stage a demonstration against the incident.

`A mortar shell, fired from an unidentified direction, hit the house of Saiful Malook in hilly Gohati area around 8am, injuring four persons, residents of the area told this scribe.

They said that the injured identified as Gul Wali, Gulab Gul, Suleman and Sida Jan were shifted to Larkholozo hospital for treatment.

Later, they were shifted to Bajaur Scouts Hospital in Khar.

Sources said that one of the injured was later airlifted to a Peshawar hos-pit al by helicopter under the supervision of Bajaur Scouts owing to his critical condition.

Scores of people, mostly youth and political activists, from several areas of Lowi Mamund tehsil held a protest in Laghari area against the incident. They said that the incident panicked locals, who were already facing immense hardships owing to the ongoing military operation in the region.

`The injuring of four innocent people in today`s tragic incident has not only instilled fear among residents but also aggrieved the entire population of Lowi Mamund. This terrible incident occurred despite announcement of authorities during a meeting with the local elders that there would be no operation in the mentioned areas on Thursday,` they said.

The demonstrators asked authorities to investigate the incident.

MPA Dr Hamidur Rehman also condemned the incident and called for transparent investigation into it.

`This is totally unacceptable. It was decided on Wednesday that no shells would be fired in the region on Thursday,` he said in his socialmedia post.

Meanwhile, a man was wounded after unidentified persons attacked a petrol pump with a hand grenade on Wednesday night.Police said that unidentified assailants hurled a grenade at Jamal petrol pump in Jar area of Khar tehsil at around 3am. They said that a man, believed to bewatchman of the filling station sustained injuries in the attack and his room was also damage.

An official told this scribe that a team of police personnel from the nearby post rushed to the scene soon after the attack. However, he said that attackers fled before arrival of the police team.

The residents of the area on Thursday staged a protest against the incident and blocked BajaurMardan road. Led by PTI leader Sikandarzeb Khan, they expressed concerns over the incident and demanded arrest of attackers.

Protesters said that it was fifth attack on the filling station during the past few months. They said that owners of the filling station had no personal enmity.

They ended the protest after two hours when officials of district administration assured them of deploying three policemen at filling station.

Our correspondent from Khyber adds: Unidentified persons attacked a security checkpost in Ziyarrai area of Landi Kotal while a projectile hit a water tank in the under-construction Rescue 1122 building near Hamza Baba mausoleum on the night between Wednesday and Thursday.

Police said that the boundary wall and a room of the checkpost was partially damaged in the attack.

They said that attackers fled in the darkness of night when forces retaliated fire from inside the checkpost.

No casualties were reported.

In another incident, a light projectile hit the water tanker inside the under-construction Rescue 1122 building. Construction workers inside the building remained unhurt.

Meanwhile, unidentified persons blew up a power pylon in Bar Qambarkhel area of Bara on Wednesday night.

In Tirah, suspected militants kidnapped a furniture dealer from Thor Thot locality, local sources said.

They said that Bacha Wazir, a resident of Haider Kandaw village, was on his way to Kurram district when his car was intercepted by armed men in Thor Thot area. They took him away at gunpoint, they added.

Nobody claimed responsibility for his abduction.