By Islamuddin Sajid

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan

At least one police officer has been killed and 13 others injured, including eight civilians, in a blast in northwestern Pakistan on Friday, local media reported.

An improvised explosive device (IED) went off near a police van in the Bannu district, Geo News, a local broadcaster reported.

Several wounded are reportedly in critical condition.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but the outlawed Tehreek-I-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has generally been involved in previous such attacks in the region.

Bannu is located in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, which borders North Waziristan Agency -- which has served as a battleground between the army and the Taliban since June 2014.