Blast kills 19 on Pak's Independence Day

At least 16 people were killed and over 30 injured in bomb attacks and violence in restive  Balochistan while three soldiers died in north Waziristan region, when Taliban terrorists struck at a Pakistan Independence Day parade.

Taliban militants attacked an Independence Day parade at an army camp in North Waziristan tribal region of Pakistan on Sunday, killing three soldiers and injuring 22 more.

The attack was carried out in Miranshah, the main town in North Waziristan Agency. Four rockets hit the Scouts Fort while security personnel were holding an Independence Day parade, security officials said.

The rockets landed in the parade ground and three soldiers were killed instantly. At least 14 people were killed and 30 others were injured when a bomb blast ripped through a roadside hotel in Dera Allah Yar city in Balochistan province, police and witnesses said.

The hotel was destroyed by the blast, which damaged nearby shops and buildings. Police officials said eight to 10 people could still be buried under the rubble. Footage on television showed local residents digging through the debris with their hands to pull out the bodies and the injured.

Witnesses said the bomb was placed in the two-storey hotel's ground floor. The powerful explosion was heard from several kilometres away. No group claimed responsibility for the blast. In a separate incident, unidentified gunmen killed two labourers from Punjab province in Lasbella district of Balochistan.