A suicide bomber killed 35 Pakistani soldiers at an army training ground today in an attack the military said was linked to an bloody army assault on a militant camp last week.
The explosion, the most serious militant attack against the Pakistani military, took place in the town of Dargai, in North West Frontier Province.
It came nine days after security forces attacked a madrasa, or religious school, in a nearby tribal area, killing 80 people.
"The bomber wrapped a chadar (cloak) around his body and came running into the training area and exploded himself where recruits had gathered for training," a military official said. There was no immediate claim of responsibility.
Pakistan is a major US ally in the war on terrorism and has been battling militants in its northwest over the past few years. Hundreds of militants and members of the security forces have been killed.
A security official said a second bomber's explosives had not gone off and he was being hunted not far from the town after escaping on a motorcyle.
Dargai, 130 km (85 miles) northwest of the capital Islamabad, is a stronghold of the Tehrik-e-Nifaz-e-Shariat-e-Mohammadi (Movement for the Implementation of Mohammad's Sharia Law) militant group. The group, which backs Afghanistan's Taliban, was banned by the government in 2002.
Last week, security forces attacked the group's school in the Bajaur tribal area to the northwest of Dargai, near the Afghan border. About 80 suspected militants were killed, authorities said.
The group denied that militants were being trained at the school. Its supporters and local politicians said the attack was carried out by US forces. The United States and Pakistan denied the claim.