A suicide bomber attacked the main border crossing for convoys ferrying supplies to US and NATO troops in Afghanistan, killing at least 19 security officers, officials said.
The strike on Thursday raised fears that the Pakistani Taliban is regrouping and making good on its word to carry out revenge attacks following the slaying of its leader, Baitullah Mehsud, in a CIA missile strike earlier this month.
Also in the border region, two US missiles hit a suspected militant compound, killing six people, the latest in a string of such attacks, intelligence officials said.
Pakistan’s lawless border with Afghanistan is a main front in the battle against al-Qaeda and the Taliban, who are destabilizing both countries. Under heavy US pressure, the Pakistani military has launched ground offensives and air attacks on the insurgents in recent months, but much of the region remains under militant control.
The suicide attacker walked up to a group of border guards outside their barracks at the Torkham checkpoint in the Khyber region and detonated his explosives, local police officer Sadiq Khan said. The victims were breaking their day-long fast during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. The border had closed for the day a few hours earlier.
Ali Raza, an official in the administration office, said he heard a huge explosion in the building next door.
“We rushed out and saw destruction all around,” Raza said.
He said several of the wounded told him the last thing they remembered was seeing a boy approaching carrying what they thought was water. It was unclear if the boy was the bomber.
At least 19 people were killed and 20 wounded, said Fazal Akbar, the head doctor at Landi Kota hospital, where all the victims were taken.
The Torkham checkpoint marks the main border crossing from Pakistan’s Khyber Pass into Afghanistan.
US and NATO troops in landlocked Afghanistan rely on the supply line for up to 75 percent of their fuel, food and other logistical goods.
Thousands of civilian vehicles also use the route.
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