Eight dead in explosion in Pakistan

Peshawar: An explosion destroyed a militant compound, killing as many as eight people as Pakistani paramilitary forces pushed deeper into a volatile tribal region, witnesses said.

The targeted extremists in Khyber region claimed a missile was fired from Afghanistan, but an expert said stored explosives blew up. The blast on Monday left bodies buried in piles of shattered masonry and mud bricks.

Pakistan denied its security forces were responsible for the nighttime explosion, and a Pentagon official said he knew of no missile attack.

The blast came as Pakistani paramilitary troops pressed their offensive against Islamic militants threatening both the city of Peshawar and a key supply line for the US military effort in Afghanistan.

As the operation entered its third day, the paramilitary Frontier Corps advanced deeper into Khyber and faced no resistance, capturing strategic hilltops and manning checkpoints that had been abandoned by tribal police, a senior Corps officer said.

The officer said troops in the Bara area, which starts on the outskirts of Peshawar, moved toward the remote Teerah valley.