Peshawar: A car bomb suicide attack apparently targeting a brigadier in northwest Pakistan on Tuesday killed at least three people and wounded 13 others, police said, though the senior officer escaped unhurt.
The attack took place near the cantonment railway station in Peshawar, the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
"It was a vehicle-borne suicide attack, which killed three people including an FC (Frontier Constabulary) soldier, and wounded 13 others," senior local police official Najib-ur-Rehman told AFP, adding the two others were civilians, one a woman.
He said it seemed the attacker blew up his car very close to the FC vehicles.
Faisal Shahzad, another senior police official, said the target of the attack appeared to be Brigadier Khalid Javed, the second-most senior officer in the FC force.
A spokesman for Peshawar's Lady Reading Hospital, Syed Jameel Shah, also confirmed the death toll, saying the hospital received three bodies.
Mr Najib said the attack appeared to be in reaction to the ongoing military operation in North Waziristan tribal region.
Peshawar is the gateway to the seven semi-autonomous tribal regions where the military has been battling Taliban and Al-Qaeda-linked militants.
The military began a long-awaited push to clear militant bases from North Waziristan in June after a bloody attack on Karachi airport finally sank faltering peace talks with the rebels.
Air strikes, artillery, mortars and ground troops have all been used to retake territory there.
The tribal areas have for years been a hideout for Islamist militants of all stripes including Al-Qaeda and the homegrown Tehreek-e-Taliban, Pakistan as well as foreign fighters such as Uzbeks and Uighurs.
Pakistan's army says it has killed more than a thousand militants and lost 86 soldiers since the start of the current operation.
The attack took place near the cantonment railway station in Peshawar, the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
"It was a vehicle-borne suicide attack, which killed three people including an FC (Frontier Constabulary) soldier, and wounded 13 others," senior local police official Najib-ur-Rehman told AFP, adding the two others were civilians, one a woman.
Faisal Shahzad, another senior police official, said the target of the attack appeared to be Brigadier Khalid Javed, the second-most senior officer in the FC force.
Advertisement
Mr Najib said the attack appeared to be in reaction to the ongoing military operation in North Waziristan tribal region.
Advertisement
The military began a long-awaited push to clear militant bases from North Waziristan in June after a bloody attack on Karachi airport finally sank faltering peace talks with the rebels.
Advertisement
The tribal areas have for years been a hideout for Islamist militants of all stripes including Al-Qaeda and the homegrown Tehreek-e-Taliban, Pakistan as well as foreign fighters such as Uzbeks and Uighurs.
Advertisement
COMMENTS
Advertisement
Watch: Pak Plane's Landing Gear Catches Fire, Fliers Slide Down Ex Senator Among 5 Killed In Blast Near Afghan Border In Pakistan 18 Killed, 42 Injured In Series Of Suicide Attacks In Nigeria World's Largest Isolated Tribe Makes Rare Appearance In New Footage Relationship Timeline Of Hardik Pandya, Wife Who "Parted Ways": 5 Facts Why BJP Lost Lok Sabha Polls In Uttar Pradesh - 6 Reasons In Party Report Delhi University Inviting Applications For Course In Pali/Tibetan Hegemonistic Ambitions: Tibet PM-In-Exile On China Renaming Places In India 7 Killed, 3 Injured As Taxi Falls Into Roadside Well In Maharashtra: Report Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.