(AKI) - Pakistan's Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gillani on Thursday condemned the bomb blast that killed at least nine people, including six policemen, in the town of Bannu near the Afghan border.Gillani ordered an inquiry into the incident that shook the town in the North West Frontier Province. The bomb was planted in a vehicle parked on a bridge and detonated by remote control as a prison van approached, according to sources quoted by GEO News. The force of the explosion caused the van to plunge into a dry portion of the Karam River below, according to police. No-one claimed responsibility for the attack.
Bannu is close to the border with Afghanistan, where Islamist militants have been attacking security forces.
At least 13 people were taken to hospital for wounds, a doctor at Bannu hospital said. It is the latest in a series of recent attacks against security personnel in the volatile area.