Islamabad, May 16 (IANS): Two traders were killed when unidentified gunmen shot at them in Pakistan's northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Peshawar police said.

The incident took place on Sunday, Xinhua news agency reported.

The incident happened in a busy market area of the provincial capital of Peshawar where the gunmen riding on motorbikes attacked the traders in an apparent targeted killing and fled the scene, police added.

The traders belonged to a minority group and ran shops of spices in the market, said a statement by Capital City Police Officer, Ijaz Khan said.

Khan later told the media that a search operation was underway in the Khyber district to apprehend the alleged attackers.

A protest by the minority group in the city was held in the wake of the attack, demanding the government arrest the accused and bring them to justice.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the attack and asked the provincial government to ensure safety of minority group traders.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.