At least 15 killed in car bomb attack on police checkpoint in Pakistan

Terrorists detonated a car bomb at a checkpoint in northwestern Pakistan and opened fire on police, killing at least 15 and wounding three, officials have said.

"Last night in the Fateh Khel area of Bannu, a suicide bomber rammed an explosives-laden vehicle into a police checkpoint, after which multiple terrorists entered the post," Bannu police official Muhammad Sajjad Khan said on Sunday.

He said that 15 officers were confirmed dead, the latest attack in the border province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa during a wave of militancy that has strained ties between Islamabad and Kabul.

Gunmen stormed the police checkpost after the car blast, opening fire, according to officials who said they also used small drones in the attack.

"During the assault, the militants used quadcopters along with heavy weaponry," a senior administrative official in Bannu said on condition of anonymity.

He said more than 100 terrorists took part in the attack.

"In addition, while retreating, the attackers took police personnel and weapons from the station with them," he added.

The worst fighting

A militant alliance known as the Ittehad-ul-Mujahideen claimed responsibility for the attack.

Militant attacks have the potential to reignite fighting along Pakistan's border with Afghanistan. The worst fighting in years erupted between the allies-turned-foes in February, with Pakistani air strikes ​inside Afghanistan that Islamabad said targeted militant strongholds.

Fighting has since eased, with occasional skirmishes breaking out along the border, but no official ceasefire has been brokered.

Islamabad blames Kabul for harbouring militants who use Afghan soil to plot attacks in Pakistan.

The Taliban has denied the allegations and said militancy in Pakistan is an internal problem.

___

Source: TRT