Fifteen dead' in Pakistan blast

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'Fifteen dead' in Pakistan blast

Fifteen people have reportedly been killed in a suspected suicide bombing on a military convoy in north-western Pakistan, the army has said.

At least 20 people were injured in the blast on the outskirts of Bannu, a garrison town.

Army spokesman Maj Gen Waheed Arshad told Pakistan's Geo TV four policemen and 11 civilians died in the blast.

Bannu is on the Afghan border near the North Waziristan tribal region, a heartland for pro-Taleban militants.

The Monday morning bomb appears to have been in an auto-rickshaw that was being checked by police.

But it is not clear if the device was detonated by the driver or a passenger.

Casualty figures were said to be high because the explosion happened close to a busy bus stand.

Pakistan's army has been hit by a number of attacks in recent months.

Bombings and attacks have soared since security forces ousted pro-Taleban militants from a radical mosque in Islamabad earlier in July.