Suicide bomber hits Pakistan town

At least 17 people killed in attack on police station in the northwest of the country. Last Modified: 12 Jan 2011 14:39 GMT

The Taliban claimed that they struck the police station in response to US drone strikes [AFP] A suicide bomber has killed at least 17 people, including security officers, in northwest Pakistan in an attack on a police station and an adjacent mosque. The bombing on Wednesday at Miryan town police station in Bannu district also wounded at least 13 other people, according to medical staff. The bomber drove a car carrying explosives into the building killing police officers and paramilitary fighters. The Taliban immidiately claimed responsibility for the attack. They said that the bombing was in response to US drone attacks in the coutnry's northwest, where the Taliban launch strikes within Pakistan and in Afghanistan. "We claim responsibility for this attack. We will continue such attacks unless the drone attacks are stopped," Azam Tariq, a Taliban spokesman speaking from an undisclosed location, said. Security officials said on Wednesday that an unmanned drone aircraft fired missiles at an opposition location in the North Waziristan region at dawn, killing five armed men. The US refuses to confirm missions it undertakes in the Pakistan-Afghan border region, which take place with Pakistan's tacit approval. Washington is aiming to crush the Taliban and al-Qaeda there.

Source: Agencies