QUETTA: At least four paramilitary soldiers were martyred and 20 wounded in a suicide attack in the southwest on Sunday, officials said, part of a spike in attacks on security forces in recent weeks as neighbouring Afghanistan fell to the Taliban.

The militant Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) claimed responsibility for the attack. The group, which is separate from the Afghan Taliban.

Islamabad fears a rise in militant attacks along the Afghan-Pakistan border as the Afghan Taliban tries to fill a vacuum left by the collapse of the Western-backed administration in that country.

The attack occurred as a checkpoint security detail was being relieved, said Rashid, interior minister. Four members of the Frontier Constabulary (FC) were martyred and 20 wounded, he told reporters.

Pakistan Army soldier martyred in attack on military post in North Waziristan

A suicide bomber on a motorcycle packed with 6 kg (13 pounds) of explosives rammed a vehicle in an FC convoy, said Azhar Akram, deputy inspector general of the Quetta police.

A senior official said last week that Islamabad is worried about militant fighters from the Pakistani Taliban group crossing from Afghanistan and launching lethal attacks on its territory.

The Afghan Taliban have sought to reassure their neighbour that they will not allow their territory to be used by anyone planning attacks on Pakistan or any other country.-Reuters

APP adds: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Sunday condemned the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) suicide attack on Frontier Constabulary (FC) check post, Mastung Road, Quetta which caused the loss of previous human lives.

Imran Khan in a tweet posted on his social media handle expressed his condolences with the families of the martyrs and prayed for the recovery of the injured. The prime minister saluted the country's security forces and their sacrifices to keep the masses safe by thwarting foreign-backed terrorists' designs.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021