Islamabad, Dec 31 (IANS): At least eight persons were injured in a bomb blast that hit a police vehicle in Bannu district of Pakistan's northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Tuesday, police said.

Local police said that a roadside bomb explosion hit the vehicle during its patrol in Sorangi area of the district, leaving eight people wounded.

Following the incident, police, security forces and rescue teams rushed to the site and shifted the injured to a nearby hospital.

Police added that one police officer and four constables were among the persons who sustained injuries in the blast.

According to the bomb disposal squad, an improvised explosive device was planted on the roadside, and it was detonated with a remote-controlled device.

Security forces and police had cordoned off the area and started searching for perpetrators.

No group claimed the attack yet, Xinhua news agency reported.

At least 383 security personnel and 925 terrorists have been killed in 59,775 operations conducted across Pakistan in 2024, a senior officer of the Pakistan army had said on Friday.

During the operations, 73 high-value targets from the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and other militant groups were killed, Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, Director General of the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), told a press briefing.

"This year marks the highest number of terrorists neutralized in the past five years," he said.

More than 179 operations have been conducted on a daily basis by the Pakistan army, law enforcement and intelligence agencies, and the police during the year, the ISPR chief said.

The Pakistani military has expanded its operations to combat smuggling, drug trafficking, electricity theft, and hoarding, he noted.

"The army and law enforcement agencies fight terrorists, but the nation fights terrorism," he said, adding that all segments of society and political parties stand united on this front.