ISLAMABAD - Pakistan’s military says that an early morning suicide attack on one of its regional bases near the Afghan border left four assailants and two soldiers dead.

The heavily armed group of bombers tried to enter the Ghalani camp in the Mohmand tribal district and attack a packed mosque in a residential area, according to an official statement.

It said that security forces engaged them and contained them in the outer courtyard of the mosque, killing two attackers while the other two blew themselves up during an intense gunbattle.

The military confirmed the encounter left two of its personnel dead and another 14 wounded.

An extremist group fighting alongside the anti-state Pakistani Taliban claimed it was behind the assault.

The so-called Jamaat-ul-Ahrar faction claimed in a statement sent to reporters that the Pakistan military camp was targeted because it serves as a detention and torture center for captured Taliban fighters and their relatives.

The group has staged multiple attacks in Pakistan, targeting civilians, religious minorities and security forces.

Pakistani authorities allege the group is sheltering and operating out of border areas in Afghanistan with the help of the neighboring country’s intelligence agency.

Kabul denies the charges.

The United States earlier this year added Jamaat-ul-Ahrar to its list of global terrorist organizations after it claimed responsibility for a attack on the U.S. consulate in Peshawar.

The violence killed two Pakistani employees of the diplomatic facility.</s>At least four militants were killed in retaliatory fire by security forces when they launched a "suicide attack" on a camp of the Mohmand Rifles Headquarters in Mohmand Agency on Saturday.

Two soldiers of the Frontier Corps (FC) were killed in the attack in Ghalanai, DG Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Asim Bajwa said on Twitter.

He said security forces had "defeated" the attack, killing all four suicide bombers. At least 14 FC men were injured in the attack.

The Jamaat-ul-Ahrar militant group claimed responsibility for the attack.

Four suicide bombers attempted to enter the camp at 6:20am and attack a mosque in a residential area where a large number of soldiers were attending morning prayers.

“Wearing suicide jackets, the attackers opened fire and tried to rush inside the mosque,” the ISPR said in a statement.

“Security forces surrounded the attackers. Two of the attackers blew themselves up while two others were shot dead,” it added.

The attackers were contained in the outer courtyard of the mosque.

A curfew was imposed in Mohmand Agency following the incursion as gunship helicopters searched the area.

Mohmand is one of Pakistan’s seven tribal agencies near the Afghan border where the military has been battling Al-Qaeda and Taliban-linked militants for over a decade.

The army launched operation Zarb-i-Azb in June 2014 in a bid to wipe out militant bases in the northwestern tribal areas. Security has since improved though scattered attacks still take place.

In September this year, a suicide bomber targeted a mosque in Mohmand Agency's Anbar tehsil during Friday prayers, leaving at least 24 people dead.</s>Pakistan's military and officials say a group of militants have attacked a mosque at an army facility in northwest Pakistan, triggering a shootout in which four insurgents and two soldiers were killed.

The army in a statement said 14 troops were also wounded in Saturday's suicide attack on Ghalani Camp in Mohmand tribal region bordering Afghanistan.

It said the attackers wanted to enter the camp and started firing after they reached the mosque, where residents and a large number of recruits were present. It said the attackers were "contained in the outer courtyard" of the mosque, and subsequently all four died.

Two security officials also confirmed the account and said a search operation is underway to trace and arrest any accomplices of the attackers.</s>At least 2 Pakistani soldiers were killed and 14 others were wounded in a coordinated suicide attack on a Frontier Corps camp in Mohmand Agency.

DG Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Asim Bajwa confirmed the soldiers of the Frontier Corps (FC) were killed in the attack in Ghalanai.

Bajwa further added that the security forces had “defeated” the attack, killing all four suicide bombers.

At least 14 Frontier Corps soldiers were injured in the attack, security sources said.

The sources further added that the militants attacked the FC camp inside the agency headquarters at 6:20am.

A heavy exchange of fire ensued between the militants and soldiers, until all attackers were killed, the sources said.

The Jamaat-ul-Ahrar militant group claimed responsibility for the attack.

Located along Durand Line, Mohmand is one of Pakistan’s seven tribal agencies where the military has been battling Al-Qaeda and Taliban-linked militants for over a decade.

The Pakistani military launched operation Zarb-i-Azb in June 2014 in a bid to wipe out militant bases in the northwestern tribal areas.

Follow Khaama Press (KP) | Afghan News Agency on Twitter, become a fan on Facebook. Stay updated via RSS</s>PESHAWAR, Pakistan (Reuters) - Four heavily-armed suicide bombers attacked a military facility in northwestern Pakistan on Saturday and killed two soldiers, but failed to storm a busy mosque inside, the army said.

A splinter group of the Pakistani Taliban, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan Jamaat-ur-Ahrar (TTP-JA), claimed responsibility for the attack on Ghalani Camp in Mohmand Agency that is part of the lawless Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) bordering Afghanistan.

A spokesman for TTP-JA, Ehsanullah Ehsan, said the Islamist group carried out the raid in an effort to set free fellow militants from custody of the security forces.

The militants began their attack at 6 am local time (0100 GMT) and attempted to storm into a mosque where a large number of army recruits were present, the army said.

"Wearing suicide jackets they opened fire and tried to rush inside the mosque. They were taken on and contained in the outer courtyard of the mosque," the military said in a statement.

Two of the attackers were shot dead and two detonated their explosive vests, preventing a "huge disaster", the army added.

Pakistan's frontier regions, deeply conservative and hard to access due to rough terrain, have long been the sanctuary of fighters from al Qaeda, the Taliban and other militant groups.

In 2014, the army launched a major operation in other parts of FATA including North and South Waziristan against insurgents who routinely attacked government officials and civilians.

Most of the myriad militant groups that stage attacks inside Pakistan seek to overthrow the government to establish an Islamic theocracy and impose a stricter interpretation of the religion than is practised in much of the country.
Four suicide bombers and two soldiers are killed in a failed attack on the Ghalani camp in the Mohmand tribal distrct. Jamaat-ul-Ahrar claims responsibility.