At least 12 soldiers were killed in a suicide bombing by separatist rebels at a military post in Pakistan. The attack took place on Tuesday night in Bannu district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province near the Afghan border. Six members of the attackers died. Voice of America reported this information.
The statement of the Pakistani security forces said, “The armed insurgents tried to enter the military post and were prevented by the security forces. Then they hit the military post with a car full of explosives. A part of the wall collapsed and the surrounding infrastructure was damaged.
According to local security forces sources, at least six army personnel were injured in the incident, two of them in critical condition.
Pakistani security forces blamed the outlawed 'Khawarij' group known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan for the attack. They often attack army and police forces in border areas in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) leader Hafiz Gul Bahadur claimed responsibility for the attack last night. According to the government of Pakistan, TTP is a terrorist organization banned by the United Nations. They have taken shelter in Afghanistan and are carrying out violence.
Islamabad called on the Taliban government to take measures to prevent TTP and other anti-Pakistani groups from carrying out terrorist activities across the border.
However, the Taliban government denied this accusation of Pakistan. They claim that there are no foreign armed insurgents or terrorist groups in Afghanistan.
Pakistani security forces are battling 'separatists' in the southwestern province of Balochistan. Islamabad's private research institute 'Centre for Research and Security Studies' (CRSS) has reported that more than 1,100 Pakistanis, most of whom are members of the security forces, have lost their lives in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa this year due to violence by armed insurgents.
Balochistan is a region rich in natural resources of Pakistan. Several major development projects in the region have recently been undertaken with Chinese funding. In view of this yesterday, Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif has given permission to conduct new military operations in Balochistan. However, according to the official announcement, the schedule or details of this military operation have not been disclosed.
