12 killed in blast at police check post, 2 killed in ambulance attack in Pakistan

At least 12 people were killed in a blast at a police check post in Pakistan's northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Saturday, police and rescue sources said, reported Xinhua.

The attack occurred at about 2:20 p.m. local time (0920 GMT) in Dera Ismail Khan district, where the check post was located near a peace gathering with a large number of locals in attendance, police sources told Xinhua.

The attack targeted the police check post, while both civilians and policemen were among those killed and injured, the sources added.

Bilal Faizi, spokesperson for the state-owned Rescue 1122 service, told Xinhua that rescuers had recovered 12 bodies and shifted the injured to a nearby hospital, where several were in critical condition.

Six ambulances, a fire vehicle and more than 25 rescue personnel were taking part in relief and rescue operations, he said.

A further investigation into the nature and cause of the explosion was underway, police said.

Meanwhile, at least two rescue workers were killed on Saturday after terrorists opened fire on an ambulance transporting an injured person to a hospital in Dera Ismail Khan district of Pakistan's northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, an official said.

A Rescue 1122 official told Xinhua that unidentified terrorists attacked the ambulance with automatic weapons near the Darazinda area of the district. The ambulance was transporting a person injured earlier in the day in a bomb attack on a police checkpost.