Car bomb attack on checkpoint kills 15 in Pakistan

Militants detonated a car bomb at a checkpoint in northwestern Pakistan and opened fire on police, killing at least 15 and wounding three, officials said on Sunday.

"Last night in the Fateh Khel area of Bannu, a suicide bomber rammed an explosives-laden vehicle into a police checkpoint, after which multiple militants entered the post," Bannu police official Muhammad Sajjad Khan told the media.

He said that 15 officers were confirmed dead, the latest attack in the border province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa during a wave of militancy that has strained ties between Islamabad and Kabul.

Gunmen stormed the police checkpost after the car blast, opening fire, according to officials who said they also used small drones in the attack.

"During the assault, the militants used quadcopters along with heavy weaponry," a senior administrative official in Bannu told the media on condition of anonymity.

An injured victim receives treatment at a hospital following a car bombing attack by militants in Bannu on Sunday. AFP

He said more than 100 militants took part in the attack.

"In addition, while retreating, the attackers took police personnel and weapons from the station with them," he added.

Bannu has been gripped in recent years by militant activity that has grown across Pakistan's border regions.

The Taliban government in Kabul denies Pakistan's accusations that Afghan territory is a safe harbour for militants, but the frosty relationship has spiralled into deadly armed conflict, including Pakistani airstrikes on cities in Afghanistan in recent months.

Agence France-Presse