Blast kills seven policemen in northwest Pakistan

ISLAMABAD — At least seven policemen were killed in an explosion near a police vehicle in in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, the interior ministry said on Friday.According to a police spokesperson, the explosion occured close to a police mobile, resulting in the deaths of six officers, while one policeman sustained injuries in the incident.The injured officer was rushed to Insaafuddin Hospital but succumbed to his injuries during treatment.The explosion took place in the Lakki Marwat district following an attempted drone strike by Afghan Taliban forces in Kohat, according to Pakistani officials.In a statement issued from his office, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the attack in Lakki Marwat and extended his prayers and best wishes for the deceased and injured personnel.“We will never let sacrifices of police personnel and security forces go in vain,” he said. We are determined to completely eradicate terrorism from the country.”The bomb attack came a day after two suspected militants were killed and four others were arrested during a joint operation conducted by police, counter-terrorism department and pro-government militias in the same district, police said.Islamabad accuses Afghanistan’s Taliban government of failing to rein in militant groups that it says use Afghan soil to plan and launch attacks in Pakistan, a charge Kabul denies.