A suicide bombing in Pakistan’s North Waziristan has killed 13 soldiers and wounded several others. The attacker drove an explosive-laden vehicle into a military convoy in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, a local government official said. The explosion also wounded 10 army personnel and 19 civilians, and damaged nearby houses.
As per local media outlet Khyber Chronicles, the attack took place Khaddi Market Mir Ali, North Waziristan. The blast caused extensive damage to surrounding homes and shops. A police officer said that the roofs of two houses caved in as a result of the explosion, injuring six children.
Before the suicide attack, another attack took place in the Letai Sar area of South Waziristan, where a military patrol was ambushed by militants. At least five soldiers were injured in the exchange of fire, with one reported to be in critical condition.
Aswad al-Harb group, led by Mufti Sadiq Noor alias Talha, claimed responsibility for the suicide attack. This group is is affiliated with the emerging network Ittihad-ul-Mujahideen Pakistan (IMP), an ideological offshoot of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). The ambush was done by Khawarij operatives.
This bombing is just one part of a greater surge of increasing militant attacks in Pakistan, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. In early March, 10 militants were shot by the army in South Waziristan following a suicide bomber attack on a Frontier Corps camp. In the same month, a train was attacked by the Baloch Liberation Army in Balochistan, killing 21 passengers and four soldiers.
