Pakistani officials say a suicide bomber rammed his vehicle into a paramilitary checkpoint in a tribal area near the Afghan border Sunday, killing eight troops.
Authorities say the attacker detonated the explosives-laden truck at a Frontier Corps checkpoint in South Waziristan, roughly 20 kilometers outside the main town of Wana.
Pakistan's tribal areas, in the northwest of the country, are considered to be Taliban and al-Qaida militant strongholds.
Today's attack comes two days after suspected U.S. missile strikes in northwestern Pakistan. Intelligence officials say more than 20 people, including a mid-level al-Qaida leader, were killed in those strikes.
In Islamabad Sunday the International Committee of the Red Cross issued an appeal for $7.8 million in emergency funding to help the victims of last week's earthquake in the southwest.
Officials say Wednesday's quake in mountainous Baluchistan province killed about 300 people and left tens of thousands homeless. The Red Cross says the priority is to provide shelter for quake victims as winter sets in.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
