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http://www.hipakistan.com/en/detail.php?newsId=en66866&F_catID=&f_type=source

PESHAWAR/WANA: A suspected al-Qaeda member and a soldier of Shawal Scouts were killed in an apparent suicide attack, while two others were seriously injured at a check-post in North Waziristan agency, close to the border with Afghanistan on Thursday.

According to eyewitnesses, the foreign national, believed to be an Uzbek, attacked the militiamen at the Dumdail check-post, 20 kilometres south of Miranshah, headquarters of North Waziristan, when a passenger coach in which he was travelling from Miranshah to Razmak was signalled to stop at 11:30 am.

As soon as the vehicle was signalled by the security men to stop "he jumped out of the coach and attacked the soldiers with a hand grenade", eyewitnesses said. A soldier of the Shawal Rifles Noor Alam Turi, succumbed to his injuries and died in a hospital in Miranshah, while two soldiers, Suhbat Khan Bittani and Azmat Khan Afridi, were seriously injured and shifted to Peshawar.

The office assistant of the Commandant Shawal Rifles confirmed the incident and said that the foreign national, who also died in the attack, appeared to be an Uzbek rather than an Arab. "The injured soldiers are in critical condition," he added.

The body of the killed terrorist was removed in a military helicopter to Miranshah, officials said. "He was an al-Qaeda man," said the injured soldier, Azmat Afridi, adding that one of his colleagues, who was in civil dress tried to overpower the attacker but the attacker was very quick and trained enough to carry out the attack killing himself and injuring three others.

Fata Security Secretary Brig (retd) Mehmud Shah told a news conference in Peshawar that the terrorist was killed by the security guards at the check-post after three of the militiamen were injured in the grenade attack. Shah said that two Uzbeks, five Afghans and three Pakistani nationals have been arrested at the check-post.

The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) in Islamabad, however, said that FC soldiers apprehended nine people, including six foreign nationals in two separate incidents on Thursday. APP quoting an ISPR press release said a foreign miscreant was killed while five others were apprehended by Frontier Corps on Miranshah-Razmak Road in North Waziristan Agency. In the second incident, a car carrying three Burqa-clad passengers approached an FC check post. During the search, the FC Jawans found that Burqa-clad passengers were males and fully armed. They were apprehended and five grenades and five machineguns were recovered from their possession. Two FC Jawans were also injured in the encounter with the miscreants.

And in South Waziristan, according to our Wana correspondent, the Ahmadzai tribal Lashkar will restart operation against foreigners and their local protectors today (Friday) as the administration arrested a prominent Malik Mirza Alam, raising the number of those arrested to 80. The decision to resume hunt for suspected al-Qaeda and Taliban fighters in the area was taken at a Jirga in Rustam Bazaar here. The Jirga decided that volunteers from the Yargulkhel sub-tribe would not accompany the Lashkar.

Meanwhile, Corps Commander Lt-Gen Safdar Hussain visited troops deployed in North and South Waziristan agencies and met officers and Jawans positioned at Wana, Angoor Adda, Razmak and Dabbar Miami.

Talking informally to the troops, he said: "Pakistan Army is here for the noble cause of shielding the sacred frontiers of the motherland. Earlier, on his arrival in Wana, the corps commander was given detailed briefing on security situation and other operational matters. He expressed complete satisfaction over the state of preparedness of the troops.