Suicide bomber on motorcycle kills 40, wounds nearly 100 in Pakistani tribal area

Motorcycle bomber kills at least 40 in Pakistan

PESHAWAR, Pakistan — A government official says a suicide bomber on a motorcycle has killed at least 40 people in a tribal region where Pakistan’s army has fought the Taliban. Dozens more were wounded.

Assistant political agent Rasool Khan says dozens of shops were damaged or destroyed in the explosion Friday in Yakaghund village in Mohmand tribal area. His office was the apparent target.

Some 28 ordinary criminals held in a nearby prison are believed to have escaped after the blast hit that facility as well.

The attack indicated that militants remain a potent force in Pakistan’s tribal belt bordering Afghanistan, despite army offensives.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

KHAR, Pakistan (AP) — A suicide bomber on a motorcycle struck outside a government office in a tribal region where Pakistan’s army has fought the Taliban, killing at least 18 people and wounding nearly 100 others Friday.

The attack indicated that militants remain a potent force in Pakistan’s tribal belt bordering Afghanistan, despite facing army offensives. The U.S. has praised Pakistan for taking on Islamist extremists that use the tribal region to plan attacks on Western troops across the border, but the militants have often retaliated on Pakistani soil.

The bomber detonated his explosives near the Yakaghund village office of the Mohmand tribal region’s assistant political agent — a top administrator in the area, security official Esa Khan said.

Government official Meraj Din said the attacker was on a motorcycle and trying to gain entry to the assistant political agent’s office when he was stopped and detonated the bomb.

The blast destroyed shops, government offices and a small prison, Khan said. Footage from the area showed dozens of men pouring through piles of yellow brick and mud rubble in search of survivors.

“After the blast, I saw destruction. I saw bodies everywhere. I saw the injured crying for help,” Khan told The Associated Press in the main northwest city of Peshawar, where he helped escort some of the wounded to a hospital.

Nineteen-year-old Abdul Wadood was sitting in a vehicle nearby when the attack happened.

“I only heard the deafening blast and lost consciousness,” he said, while being treated for head and arm wounds in Peshawar. “I found myself on a hospital bed after opening my eyes.

“I think those who planned or carried out this attack are not humans.”

Din said at least 18 people were killed, and other officials put the wounded toll at nearly 100. Women and children were among the victims.

Mohmand is one of several areas in Pakistan’s lawless tribal belt where Taliban and al-Qaida are believed to be hiding. The Pakistani army has carried out operations in Mohmand, but it has been unable to extirpate the militants.

Information from Mohmand is difficult to verify independently because access to the area is heavily restricted.

Riaz Khan reported from Peshawar. Associated Press Writer Munir Ahmed contributed to this report from Islamabad.