Webcast News Service, 6 September 2008

Authorities in Pakistan say at least 16 people were killed as a suicide bomber rammed a vehicle full of explosives into a police checkpoint in the country's northwest.

Officials say more than 80 others were wounded in Saturday's attack near Peshawar, the capital of North West Frontier Province.

Police say the blast destroyed the checkpoint and brought down several nearby buildings. Rescuers were searching through the rubble to find any survivors.

Pakistani Taliban terrorists have claimed responsibility for the bombing. The radical Islamist group says it has carried out several attacks in recent weeks in retaliation for military operations against terrorists in Pakistan's tribal region.

Friday, officials with the International Committee of the Red Cross said fighting in Pakistan's tribal areas has displaced tens of thousands of people in recent weeks.

Red Cross official Pascal Cuttat said in Geneva Friday that as many as 300,000 people have fled their homes in Bajaur district, near the Afghan border. He said 80 percent of those displaced are women and children.

Pakistani government forces have intensified attacks on al-Qaida and Taliban terrorists in Bajaur over the past month.