Six killed in suicide attack on Pakistani forces

MIRANSHAH, Pakistan (Reuters) - Six people, including three Pakistani soldiers and a child, were killed on Saturday in a suicide bomb attack on security forces in the North Waziristan region on the Afghan border, the military said.

North Waziristan is a sanctuary for al Qaeda and Taliban militants and has been the scene of fierce battles and suicide attacks over the past several years.

The Saturday attack on a security convoy was near the town of Mir Ali, where a large number of Arab and Central Asian militants linked to al Qaeda are believed to be hiding.

"Three civilians, including a child, and three soldiers were martyred," said a military spokesman, Major Murad Khan. Five soldiers were wounded, he said.

Pakistan's new government has committed itself to the U.S.-led campaign against Islamist militancy even though the campaign is deeply unpopular.

Security forces launched offensives against militants in two parts of the northwest in August and the government says hundreds have been killed, but there has been no offensive in North Waziristan.

(Reporting by Haji Mujtaba; Writing by Zeeshan Haider; Editing by Robert Birsel and Jerry Norton)