In a major flare-up, NATO helicopters on Saturday attacked a Pakistani military border post killing at least 28 soldiers, prompting Islamabad to launch strong protest with the US and close its frontier for supplies to allied forces in Afghanistan.
Two officers – a major and a captain – were among those killed when the helicopters fired on the check post at Baizai area of Mohmand tribal region at 2 am local time, in one of the most deadliest NATO strikes in Pakistan which threatened to further strain the already tense Pak-US ties.
Fifteen more personnel were wounded and the death toll could rise as some of the injured were in serious condition, several officials told the media.
Pakistani TV reports said that the post had only 40 soldiers.
Pakistani authorities responded to the attack by stopping all container trucks and tankers carrying supplies for US and NATO forces in Afghanistan.
Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani cut short a visit to his hometown of Multan and convened a meeting of the Defence Committee of the Cabinet to discuss the incident. Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Governor Masood Kausar, while talking to media in Islamabad, put the death toll at 26.
Other officials were quoted by the media as saying that 28 personnel were killed.
The government condemned the attack that is expected to create fresh tensions in US-Pakistan relations, which are already under severe strain following the May 2 American raid that killed Osama bin Laden in Abbottabad.