Suspected suicide bombing at police station kills 17 in Pakistan, officials say

At least 17 people, including seven police officers and 10 civilians, were killed in a suspected suicide bombing outside a police station in northwestern Pakistan's Swat district.

At least 17 people were killed in a suspected suicide bombing outside a police station in northwestern ‌Pakistan on Sunday, a rescue group and a regional police official said, as the country battles widening insurgencies.

The explosion took place in the Kabal area of Swat, a district in Pakistan's ‌Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. A pro-police rally of local residents was taking place in the ‌same area on Sunday, but it was not immediately clear whether the rally was the intended target.

The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan militant Islamist group in a statement claimed responsibility for the attack. At least 34 people were ⁠wounded ​in the explosion, ⁠according to a spokesperson for Rescue 1122.

The rescue official said the death toll rose to 17 from ⁠14 after three victims died in hospital. The victims included seven police officers and 10 civilians. One ​of the dead persons was believed to be the suicide bomber, Fida Hussain, ⁠a regional police official, told Reuters. Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif in a statement expressed "deep grief and sorrow over ⁠the ​suicide blast".

The police said an operation had been launched to arrest anyone who may have assisted in the attack. Militancy in Pakistan's border areas has risen sharply ⁠in recent months, targeting mainly the military and police.

The Pakistani government blames the Afghan Taliban ⁠for the escalation, accusing ⁠it of providing support to the militants. The Taliban government has denied the accusations.