Militant attack on N Waziristan post kills 2

Two people have been killed in the latest militants’ attack on a security checkpoint in Pakistan’s troubled northwestern province of Waziristan, officials say.

A number of armed militants launched an attack against a joint checkpoint run by Pakistan’s paramilitary Frontier Corps and tribal police in the Shawa area of North Waziristan on Wednesday.

According to security officials, the exchange of fire between troops and militants took hours. A bomber also blew himself up in an explosive-laden car at the scene.

A senior security official announced that two personnel were killed and four others were wounded during the raid.

“We have summoned more troops and the area has been cordoned off,” the official added.

A Taliban-affiliated militants group, known as Ansarul Mujahideen has claimed responsibility for the assault, saying the attack was in retaliation against the death of Pakistan Tehrik-i-Taliban leader Hakimullah Mehsud.

On November 1, a US drone airstrike killed Pakistani Taliban leader Mehsud, along with several other people, in the country’s North Waziristan tribal district.

The lasted militants’ attack comes as at least seven Taliban militants, on Tuesday, were killed in a bomb blast in Mirali area, the main town of North Waziristan, a hub for Taliban and Al-Qaeda linked militants that are fighting against the government.

There has been a surge in militant attacks against security forces as well as civilians. This is while the militants have managed to spread insecurity in various regions of the country in recent months.

Thousands of Pakistanis have lost their lives in bombings and other militant attacks since 2001 when Pakistan entered an alliance with the US on the so-called war against terrorism.

Thousands others have been displaced by the wave of violence and militancy sweeping across the country.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has been an advocate of peace talks with Taliban militants since his election campaign which ended in his victory six months ago. This comes while Pro-Taliban militants have increased their attacks across Pakistan since Premier Sharif came to power in May.