Bomb kills soldier, wounds three in North Waziristan

MIRANSHAH: A roadside bomb killed a soldier and wounded three others in a restive Pakistani tribal region near the Afghan border on Sunday, officials said.

The explosion took place at Chashma Pul, two kilometres east of Miranshah, the capital of North Waziristan tribal region, known as a bastion of Taliban and Al-Qaeda-linked rebels.

"An improvised explosive device planted along the roadside went off as a convoy of at least 35 army vehicles passed by it, killing one soldier and wounding three others," a local security official told AFP.

Another security official confirmed the incident and casualties.

He said security forces also defused two bombs planted at different locations in nearby Mir Ali town.

Homemade bombs are a main weapon of militants who attack government forces in Pakistan's northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and the tribal districts bordering Afghanistan.

The seven semi-autonomous tribal areas are a haven for Islamist militants including the Taliban.

Washington considers these areas a major hub of Taliban and Al-Qaeda militants plotting attacks on the West and in Afghanistan.