ISLAMABAD, 2 September 2007 — A suicide bombing killed four Pakistani troops near the Afghan border yesterday, as tribal elders met with militants elsewhere to seek the release of at least 120 Pakistani soldiers, officials said.
Maj. Gen. Wahid Arshad said a suicide car bomber rammed into a security forces’ vehicle in Bajour tribal region yesterday around 10 a.m. killing four Pakistani Frontier Constabulary troops, and wounding three others. Two civilians were also wounded, he said.
Earlier, a local official Abdul Hamid had described the attack as a roadside bombing and said the civilians were wounded in a shootout triggered by the blast. He also said a government official was among the dead. It was not immediately possible to reconcile the differing accounts of the incident.
Also yesterday, another suicide bomber tried to blow up an army vehicle in South Waziristan, but the device exploded prematurely, said a security official.
Pakistani forces are struggling to contain a spike in militant attacks in its volatile tribal regions, where a recent American intelligence report suggested Al-Qaeda may be regrouping.
Yesterday, tribal elders and pro-government tribesmen met with militants to urge them to free scores of troops, including at least 10 officers, who went missing in South Waziristan on Thursday, two local security officials said. The troops were traveling in a 16-vehicle convoy when they lost contact with their base camp.
