Suicide attack on Pakistan army base kills 23: Official

Militants stormed a police station in northwest Pakistan on Tuesday, killing 23 security officials and wounding several more, officials said, in a bomb and gun attack for which a Pakistani Taliban group claimed responsibility.

The attack in the district of Dera Ismail Khan, on the edge of the lawless tribal regions bordering Afghanistan, wounded 28 people, said Aizaz Mehmood, an official of the state-run rescue service.

“We are still hearing gunshots,” he added.

The militants rammed a vehicle laden with explosives into the main gate of the police station, following up with a gun attack, said sources in the district administration, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

In a statement, a Pakistani Taliban group, the Tahreek-e-Jihad Pakistan (TJP), which has emerged recently, said its militants carried out the attack aimed at the Pakistani army, but the target was not verified by officials or the military.

It was not immediately clear if this group is linked to the main Tahreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) group of Islamist and sectarian militants that has targeted the state and its agencies for years, seeking to overthrow the government and replace it with rule based on their harsh brand of Islamic laws.