By IRNA,
Islamabad : At least four American aid workers were killed in a roadside bomb attack in Pakistan’s northwest on Wednesday, sources said.
The U.S embassy said it is investigating reports of death of the USAID workers.
The bomb exploded as a convoy of security forces, foreign aid workers and local journalists were on their way to attend a school opening ceremony in Lower Dir district in North West Frontier Province, District Police Officer, Mumtaz Zarin said.
The bomb exploded when the convoy was passing through another school at Koto area, some two kilometers from Tirmargarah, a main city in Dir district, witnesses said.
The foreign aid workers and local journalists were heading to Maidan area in Dir to attend opening of a school, officials said.
Four school children were also killed in the bomb blast, hospital sources said. The blast also caused damage to the school building and nearby houses.
The attack injured up to 50 people, mostly school children. Four local journalists and two security personnel were among the injured. At least 10 injured were registered critical, hospital sources said.
The injured were shifted to local hospitals and some in critical condition were taken to other cities, officials said. No group claimed responsibility for the attack. The authorities said that Taliban militants are behind the attack.
The security forces conducted a major operation against the Taliban militants in Dir district last year. Local people had also formed ‘lashkar’ (army) to fight the militants in Dir. Dir district has seen attacks on security forces in recent months.