GHALANAI, Jan 15: A suspected suicide bomber and another militant were killed in a failed attack on a checkpoint of security forces in Khapakh Kandao near Ghalanai, the headquarters of Mohmand Agency, on Tuesday.

According to officials, three militants, one of them a young boy aged only between 12 and 14 years, approached the checkpoint of the Ghalanai Rifles in a jeep. The soldiers on duty intercepted the vehicle a few yards away from the post and asked them to stop. Two militants jumped off the vehicle and ran towards the soldiers. They were challenged and at that time the boy sitting in the jeep reportedly blew himself up.

The soldiers then opened fire on the militants, killing one of them who was identified as Nadir, hailing from Swabi. The third militant suffered bullet wounds and was captured.

An official said the jeep was packed with explosives and was detonated through a remote-control device.