Three killed in separate incidents in Pakistan

At least three persons were killed, including a child, and sixteen were injured in a bomb blast close to a police station in northwest Pakistan on Monday, local police said. The explosive material planted in a parked auto rickshaw exploded with a bang outside Merian Police Station in Bannu district bordering north Waziristan. The injured were immediately shifted to Bannu District Headquarters Hospital for medical treatment. The explosion triggered panic and fear in the surrounding areas.

Additional, police contingents were dispatched to the site, and security in the area was tightened. Investigations into the nature and cause of the blast are underway. Meanwhile, in a separate incident, a child was killed and eight others were injured when an unexploded mortar shell detonated inside a house in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, police said. According to local police, the children had picked up the unattended mortar shell from nearby fields and brought it home, where it exploded while they were playing.  One child, identified as Anas, died on the spot, while eight others sustained injuries.

The incident occurred in Mamond tehsil of Bajaur district. Rescue teams rushed the injured to Khar District Hospital, where they were admitted for treatment. In a separate incident in the same tehsil, militants attacked Police Station Umaray late Sunday night using heavy weapons. During the exchange of fire, Additional Station House Officer Umaray Gul Mehsud was killed, police confirmed. Security forces have cordoned off the area and launched a search operation following the attack.