23 soldiers killed in Pakistan terrorist attack

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PESHAWAR: At least 23 soldiers of Pakistan were killed and more than 30 others injured when six terrorists linked to a Pakistani Taliban affiliate rammed an explosive-laden truck into a security forces’ post in the restive Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province on Tuesday. It is one of the worst terror attacks targeting security forces in recent years.

According to the Inter-Services Public Relations, the media wing of the army, the terrorists attacked the security post in Dera Ismail Khan’s Daraban area bordering the South Waziristan tribal district in the early morning hours. The army had set up the camp in a police station complex in the Daraban area.

“The attempt to enter the post was effectively thwarted which forced the terrorists to ram an explosive-laden vehicle into the post,” it said.

Twenty-three Pakistan Army soldiers were killed while all six terrorists were also gunned down,” the ISPR said. An emergency was declared in district hospitals while all schools and colleges were closed due to the attack.

The Tehrik-e-Jihad Pakistan, an affiliate of the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan, claimed responsibility for the attack.