Four Dead as Militants Blow up 11 NATO Tankers

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Militants in northwestern Pakistan blew up at least 11 tankers carrying fuel for NATO troops in neighboring Afghanistan Friday and shot dead four people, police said.

The rebels struck at a terminal on the outskirts of the city of Peshawar, which runs into Pakistan's lawless tribal belt.

"More than two dozen militants entered the terminal and planted timed devices on 12 out of a total 18 fuel tankers parked at the terminal," senior police official Imtiaz Shah told Agence France Presse.

He said 11 tankers were blown up while the device planted on one of the vehicles did not explode. The militants shot dead two guards and two drivers who resisted them, he said, adding that another driver was hurt in the attack.

"Those who attacked the terminal were all militants but we don't know yet which group they belong to," Shah said.

Another senior police official, Muhammad Ejaz, said the militants fled after blowing up the tankers.

An AFP reporter at the scene said the massive fire destroyed the 11 tankers. Empty shells from Kalashnikov rifles and human blood could be seen inside the terminal.

Pakistan shut its main northwestern border crossing to NATO supply vehicles for 11 days in September last year after a cross-border NATO helicopter assault killed two Pakistani soldiers.

Taliban and al-Qaida-linked militants frequently launch attacks across northwestern Pakistan and the lawless tribal belt on the Afghan border.

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