AFP

Miranshah (Pakistan), Jul 18: A roadside bomb on Wednesday exploded near military and civilian vehicles in the latest attack in Pakistan's tense frontier region, wounding at least seven people, the army said.

The blast happened in the troubled tribal region of North Waziristan on the road between Miranshah, the main town in the area, and the city of Bannu, chief military spokesman Major General Waheed Arshad said.

"The explosion hit a civilian vehicle in front of an army vehicle. Six civilians were injured and one security forces official was also injured,"  said Arshad.

Local security officials said the army vehicle was likely the target of the attack but that the bomb detonated prematurely. One official said the civilian car had skidded into a deep ditch, causing some of the injuries.

The attack came a day after a suicide blast in North Waziristan killed three soldiers and a civilian, while another suicide attack in the capital Islamabad killed at least 15
people.

Pakistan has been rocked by a wave of violence since government troops stormed the hardline Red Mosque in the capital last week, leaving dozens of militants dead.

Pro-Taliban rebels in North Waziristan tore up a controversial 10-month-old peace treaty with the Pakistani authorities on Sunday.

Earlier report:

Blast kills 13 in former Chief Justice's rally

UNI

Islamabad, Jul 18: At least 13 people were killed and 47 injured in a powerful bomb explosion near a stage erected for a rally, which was to be addressed by former Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry yesterday night.

Justice Chaudhry, who was moving in a motorcade to the district court, went to the site of blast but did not address the rally.

Confirming 13 deaths in the explosion, a local police official told the sources that it was not yet clear whether it was a suicide attack, adding that the blast took place at the entrance of the venue of rally in the district court.

Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz will review security arrangements at the federal cabinet meeting today A fool proof security plan is likely to be approved.

Meanwhile, a report from Reuters said the blast went off about 30 metres from the stage that had been set up in a car park in a market area outside the court.

''I saw body parts and limbs scattered all over the place,'' said lawyer Chaudhry Manzoor Ahmed.

City police chief Iftikhar Ahmed said the blast appeared to have been caused by a suicide bomber. The city's chief administrator Khalid Pervez said 13 were killed and 47 wounded.

The explosion occurred at a stall set up by the opposition Pakistan People's Party of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, witnesses said.

Witnesses told Geo TV the suicide bomber pulled up on a motorcycle and blew himself up.

Ambulances were taking away the wounded and police were trying to cordon off the area, witnesses said.

President Pervez Musharraf suspended Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry on March 9 after drawing up a set of accusations against him.

The suspension sparked protests by lawyers defending the independence of the judiciary and opposition parties seeking an end to army chief Musharraf's 8-year rule.