ISLAMABAD

At least 12 security personnel and six terrorists were killed in a suicide bombing and the following clashes in northwestern Pakistan, the army said on Wednesday.

A suicide bomber blew himself up near a security check post in the Mali Khan area of the Bannu district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Tuesday evening before an intense exchange of firing between the two sides.

“In ensuing fire exchange, six khwarij (militants) were sent to hell. The attempt to enter the post was effectively thwarted by own troops, which forced the khwarij to ram an explosive-laden vehicle into the perimeter wall of the post,” the Pakistan Army said in the statement.

The suicide blast collapsed a portion of the perimeter wall and damaged the adjoining infrastructure, resulting "in shahadat (martyrdom) of 12 brave sons of soil that include 10 soldiers of the security forces and two soldiers of the Frontier Constabulary," the statement added.

The latest attack came after seven policemen who were kidnapped from the Bannu district a day before were "safely" recovered on Tuesday evening.

At least eight security personnel were also killed during fierce gun battles with terrorists over the weekend in the Tirah valley, bordering Afghanistan.

On Tuesday, the Pakistan army said eight terrorists were also killed in clashes in the restive Tirah valley of the Khyber tribal district. However, the military didn't confirm the killing of its soldiers in the fighting.​​​​​​​