One killed in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir suicide attack

A suicide bomber targeted an army vehicle in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) today, killing a soldier and injuring several others in the second such attack in the region this month.

The bomber blew himself up near the army vehicle at Dothan, some 15km from Rawlakot city, senior superintendent of police Sajjid Hussain said.

The attack occurred close a check post at about 10am local time.

Other officials said a soldier was killed and several others were injured. The wounded were taken to a military hospital in Rawlakot.

No group claimed responsibility for the attack.

This was the second suicide attack on the army in the Rawlakot area this month.

Four soldiers were killed when a suicide bomber struck an army barracks at Tararkhal near Rawlakot on January 6. The Pakistani Taliban had claimed responsibility for that attack.

Violence has spread in recent months from Pakistan to PoK, which was largely unaffected by militant attacks over the years. Last month, 10 people were killed when a suicide bomber struck a Shia procession in the PoK capital of Muzaffarabad. Two soldiers had died when a bomber carried out the first suicide attack in the region in June last year.

Reports have said that several banned groups, including Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashker-e-Taiba, have stepped up their activities in PoK over the past year.

Pakistan prime minister Yousuf Raza Gilani condemned today's attack and ordered an immediate inquiry into the incident.