Pakistan Suicide Bomber Kills 13 Soldiers in Deadly Convoy Attack

New Delhi: A Pakistan suicide bomber killed 13 soldiers and injured 29 others, including civilians, in North Waziristan after ramming an explosive-laden vehicle into a military convoy.  

“A suicide bomber rammed an explosive-laden vehicle into a military convoy. The blast killed 13 soldiers, injured 10 army personnel and 19 civilians,” a local government official said, requesting anonymity as he was not authorised to speak to the media.

A police officer in the district said the explosion caused the roofs of two houses to collapse, injuring six children. An administrative official added that the condition of four injured soldiers is critical.

The suicide bomber wing of the Hafiz Gul Bahadur armed group, a faction of the Pakistan Taliban, claimed responsibility for the attack.

Pakistan has witnessed a sharp rise in violence in areas bordering Afghanistan since the Taliban returned to power in Kabul in 2021, with Islamabad accusing Afghanistan of allowing its soil to be used for attacks against Pakistan, a claim the Taliban denies.

According to the tally given by AFP, around 290 people, mostly security officials, have been killed in attacks this year by armed groups fighting the government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.