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                     20 Pakistani Soldiers Killed in Blast

   by VOA News

   Officials in northwest Pakistan say a blast targeting a military convoy
   has killed 20 Pakistani soldiers and wounded at least 30 others.
   Authorities said the explosion happened Sunday as a routine weekly
   convoy was preparing to leave the town of Bannu to go the restive North
   Waziristan tribal region, which is considered a safe haven for
   al-Qaida-linked militants
   Army officials said the car that exploded had been rented from a local
   Bannu resident.  The army said it frequently hired vehicles from the
   local population.
   The Taliban has claimed responsibility for the attack.  A Taliban
   spokesman said the group will "carry out more such attacks in the
   future."
   In December, the Taliban claimed responsibility for a suicide bomb
   attack in the town of Mir Ali that killed five soldiers.  Afterwards,
   the military launched a retaliatory attack on the Taliban, killing
   three dozen militants.
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References

   1. http://www.voanews.com/content/twenty-pakistani-soldiers-killed-in-blast/1833112.html