The New Nation - Internet Edition

AFP, Peshawar

A roadside bomb planted by suspected militants blew up a police vehicle in northwestern Pakistan on Friday, killing three policemen, police said.

The explosion occurred in Lakki Marwat, a town bordering North Waziristan tribal district where security forces have been battling Taliban and Al-Qaeda militants since the 2001 collapse of Taliban rule in neighbouring Afghanistan.

Three policemen were also wounded in the attack, town police chief Romail Akram said, adding that the explosive device was apparently planted by suspected militants.

Nearly 500 people have died in intensified militant-related violence this year in Pakistan, a frontline state in the US-led "war on terrorism." Last year, about 2,000 people were killed.