MIRANSHAH, 27 August 2007 — Suspected militants attacked a military post, and a suicide bomber rammed his explosive-laden sports utility vehicle into a police patrol in separate attacks yesterday in northwestern Pakistan that killed a total of nine people, officials said.
The suicide attacker struck a police pickup truck on a security patrol in Shangla, a mountainous district in North West Frontier Province, a police officer said.
Four officers were killed and two were wounded, he said.
Hours earlier, in the North Waziristan tribal region, south of Shangla, militants attacked a military post with rockets and assault rifles, killing one soldier. Troops at the post returned fire, killing four attackers, an intelligence official said.
Violence blamed on militants has spiked in recent weeks in northwestern Pakistan, including in the North and South Waziristan tribal areas that border Afghanistan.
Security officials have said that Arab, Central Asian and Afghan militants — allegedly linked with Al-Qaeda and the Taleban — operate in the region.
The uptick in violence also comes amid increased US pressure on Pakistan’s Washington-backed leader, President Pervez Musharraf, to do more to crack down on militants in the country’s tribal zone where a recent US intelligence report indicated Al-Qaeda may be regrouping.
Musharraf, who is currently facing the toughest challenge yet to his rule, is also likely to face stiff opposition in his bid to seek another term as head of state in a vote expected later this year.
In North Waziristan, militants have staged almost daily attacks on security forces since renouncing a peace agreement with the government. Militants accused authorities of violating the September 2006 deal by redeploying troops to checkpoints that they vacated under terms of the accord. Officials said the redeployment was aimed at improving deteriorating security.
