You're reading: Pakistan: Car bombing kills 15 in northwest

A powerful car bomb went off outside the offices of pro-government tribal elders in northwestern Pakistan on Saturday, killing at least 15 people, police said.

Police official Naeem Khan
said least 30 people were also wounded in the attack in the town of
Darra Adam Khel in the troubled Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering
Afghanistan.

No group immediately claimed responsibility, but
Pakistani Taliban militants have staged such attacks in tribal region of
Darra Adam Khel to punish elders for backing security forces in
offensives against militants in the region.

Darra Adam Khel is
famous for its weapons market selling home-made guns crafted by local
artisans in this tribal region, where central government is weak. Local
elders there have formed “peace committees” to evict militants, and have
also helped authorities in the past in operations against insurgents.

It
was unclear how many people were present at the office, which belonged
to one of the peace committees. Khan said both passers-by and local
elders were among the victims.

Provincial Information Minister
Mian Iftikhar Hussain condemned the attack, and urged the federal
government to consider launching a “decisive operation against
terrorists” to eliminate them.

Khan said the dead and wounded were
being transported to hospitals in the northwestern city of Peshawar,
and some of the injured were listed in critical condition.