Four killed in bomb blast in northwestern Pakistan

At least four people lost their lives after a bomb, concealed in a plastic bag, went off in a semi-autonomous tribal area in northwestern Pakistan, near the Afghan border, officials say.

At least four people lost their lives after a bomb, concealed in a plastic bag, went off in a semi-autonomous tribal area in northwestern Pakistan, near the Afghan border, officials say.

The incident occurred in Khyber Agency, one of the seven tribal areas in Pakistan’s Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), on Saturday, when security personnel spotted a suspicious plastic bag left unattended near a security checkpoint.

“As the security officials were inspecting the plastic bag, the bomb concealed in it went off, killing a solider, two paramilitary troops and a civilian,’ a local administration official said on condition of anonymity. Other local security officials also confirmed the incident.

The army has managed to reduce violence across the Asian country in recent years following a series of counter-terrorism operations conducted against militants, but every so often remnants of the terror groups carry out periodic bloody attacks, both against people and the armed forces, particularly in the northwest.