Suicide blast kills nine in Pakistan

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A suicide bomber in a three-wheel vehicle laden with explosives killed at least nine people and wounded 34 others in northwest Pakistan on Tuesday, police said.

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“According to the initial reports, the suspected suicide attacker approached the two traffic police officers stationed at the checkpoint before blowing himself up,” senior police official Muhammad Sajjad Khan told AFP.

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The blast comes days after another suicide attack saw a car bomb detonate at a checkpoint in Bannu before militants opened fire on police, killing at least 15 people.

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Pakistan’s foreign ministry summoned the top Afghan diplomat in the country on Monday after concluding that Saturday’s attack was “masterminded by terrorists residing in Afghanistan”.

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Afghanistan’s Taliban government has repeatedly denied Pakistan’s accusations that Afghan territory was a safe harbour for militants.

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The frosty relationship between the neighbouring countries has spiralled into deadly armed conflict in recent months, including Pakistani airstrikes on cities in Afghanistan.

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AFP

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