3 soldiers killed in suicide bombing in NW Pakistan

KARACHI, Pakistan

A suicide bomber detonated his explosive-laden vehicle near a security checkpoint in Pakistan's restive North Waziristan tribal district on Wednesday, killing at least three soldiers.

Another three civilians were critically injured in the bombing in Miranshah, the administrative headquarters of North Waziristan, the latest in a series of attacks on security forces in the region, according to the Pakistan Army's media wing, Inter-Service Public Relations (ISPR).

The bomber acted alone and intended to bomb the security checkpoint; however, "timely" interception by on-duty soldiers prevented a "major catastrophe," the statement added.

So far, no group has claimed responsibility for the attack. However, security agencies have blamed such attacks on Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), an umbrella group of several militant outfits reportedly operating from bordering areas in Afghanistan.

North Waziristan, once dubbed the “heartland of militancy,” is one of seven former semi-autonomous tribal regions in Pakistan where the army has conducted a series of anti-operations since 2014 to eliminate the TTP.

Successive operations have pushed the TTP towards neighboring Afghanistan, and Islamabad claims the terrorist network has now set up bases across the border to attack Pakistani security forces.

In contrast to Islamabad's hopes for a further decrease in attacks from the bordering areas following the Taliban’s re-capture of Kabul in Aug. 2021, the army has still been facing a series of deadly attacks.