Nine Pakistan soldiers die after suicide bomber rams into military convoy

Nine soldiers were killed in Pakistan when a suicide bomber rammed his motorbike into their military convoy and set off explosives.

Another five soldiers were wounded in the attack that took place in the restive Bannu district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, located 61km from the Afghanistan border. Some of the security officials estimate the number of injured to be 20.

The attack has been claimed by Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) – Pakistan’s home-grown Taliban group, news agency PTI reported.

A "motorcycle-borne suicide bomber exploded himself", the army's media wing said, adding that additional security forces had cordoned off the area.

“Security forces of Pakistan are determined to eliminate the menace of terrorism and such sacrifices of our brave soldiers further strengthen our resolve,” the media wing said in a statement.

The province has long been a hotspot for militant activity, where organisations such as TTP have increased their attack since the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan. The TTP are a separate group but allies of the Afghan Taliban.

“The suicide bomber was riding a motorcycle and he rammed his bike into a truck in a military convoy,” provincial minister Feroze Jamal Shah told AFP.

Caretaker prime minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar called the attack "a cowardly terrorist act". “Such acts are utterly reprehensible. My thoughts are with the families of the martyred and injured,” he wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.

At least six soldiers were killed in a skirmish with militants in the Asman Manza area of South Waziristan district in late August.

Another suicide bombing last month at a political gathering in the northwest killed more than 60 people, including 23 children. The attack was claimed by the Islamic State militant group.

In January, a Taliban suicide bomber blew himself up during the afternoon prayers in a mosque in Peshawar, killing 101 people and injuring hundreds.