Mortar shells fired from across the border in Afghanistan hit a
house in Pakistan on Thursday killing two people and wounding several
children, officials said.
They blamed Pakistani Taliban, saying
the militants are hiding in eastern Afghanistan and launching across
the border attacks on Pakistani troops.
Six people including three children were wounded.
In
the latest attack, four mortar shells hit the house in Banda-Gai
village in Mamoond area, 60 kilometres (40 miles) northwest of Khar,
the main town of Bajaur tribal district.
"Two people including a
woman were killed and six others were injured. Militants fired the
mortars across the border from Afghan side," Tariq Khan, a senior
administrative official, told AFP.
"They are Pakistani militants hiding there in Afghanistan."
Shah
Naseem, another official, said the target of the attack was Pakistani
troops at the border but they remained safe and the shells missed them.
Taliban
and other Al-Qaeda-linked militants have carved out strongholds on both
sides of the porous border. Afghanistan and Pakistan blame each other
for several recent cross-border attacks.
On Tuesday, more than 20
mortar shells from Afghanistan killed four Pakistani soldiers and
wounded two others in South Waziristan, part of the lawless tribal
district.
Pakistani officials blamed the Afghan army for that attack. AFP
