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Pakistan: Dozens of militants attack security checkpoint Dozens of militants attack Pakistan security checkpoint
(about 3 hours later)
Dozens of militants have attacked a security checkpoint in north-western Pakistan, killing two policemen and wounding several others, officials say. Dozens of militants attacked a security checkpoint in north-western Pakistan, killing two policemen and wounding several others, officials said.
Up to 100 militants reportedly stormed the post near the Khyber tribal area, a stronghold for Taliban fighters.Up to 100 militants reportedly stormed the post near the Khyber tribal area, a stronghold for Taliban fighters.
Security forces killed at least a dozen insurgents during, repelling the attack, the officials say. Two members of the security forces were killed and five wounded. Police said at least 12 insurgents were also killed.
Militants have staged a number of attacks in Pakistan since Osama Bin Laden was killed in a US raid on 1 May. The attack comes a fortnight after al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden was killed by US troops in a midnight raid.
Last Friday, 80 people were killed in a double suicide bombing on a Frontier Constabulary training centre near Peshawar north-western Pakistan. But correspondents say it is more likely in response to the continuing military operations against militants in parts of the north-western tribal region.
The Pakistani Taliban said they carried out the attack - this year's deadliest on the security forces - to avenge Bin Laden's death in a compound in the Pakistani town of Abbottabad. Last Friday, 80 people were killed in a double suicide bombing on a Frontier Constabulary training centre near Peshawar city.
The Pakistani Taliban said they carried out the attack - this year's deadliest on the security forces - to avenge Bin Laden's death in the Pakistani town of Abbottabad.
"They were well-armed. They had heavy weapons, rockets, mortars everything. The fighting lasted for about four and a half hours," Ejaz Khan, a police officer in the area, told Reuters news agency.
The attack took place near Khyber, part of Pakistan's lawless tribal areas close to the Afghan border, which is regarded as a Taliban and al-Qaeda stronghold.
Officials said that the security forces repulsed the first attack just before midnight on Tuesday and called in reinforcements to fend off a follow-up attack early on Wednesday morning.
Security checkpoints are frequently attacked by militants in Pakistan - either by suicide bombings or by assaults involving large numbers of insurgents such as Wednesday's incident.
Dozens of security personnel have been killed in such attacks in and around Peshawar during the last three years.
Over the last year, the frequency of such attacks has fallen due to increased vigilance by the police and security forces.
The clashes are often linked to ongoing military offensives in the tribal belt.
Pakistan's army has carried out anti-insurgent operations in six of its seven tribal districts.
But correspondents say that the one place it has not mounted an offensive in is North Waziristan, an area which the US and Nato say is a sanctuary for militants attacking their forces in Afghanistan.