At least 16 Pakistani soldiers have been killed and five seriously injured in an attack by anti-government militants on a military-guarded checkpoint in the northwestern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The Times of India reports that the incident took place on Saturday night in the Makin district, 40 km from the border with Afghanistan. The attack involved 30 militants and the battle with them lasted for several hours. According to available information, the terrorists managed to capture the checkpoint, destroy the communication equipment located there and seize weapons.

In the first 11 months of this year, the death toll from 856 militant attacks in Pakistan amounted to 1,082. In November, there was a sharp increase in violence, which led to the deaths of 245 people across the country, including 68 Pakistani soldiers and policemen. In the clashes, 127 militants of radical and extremist groups were killed. The highest number of terrorist attacks this year took place in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Extremists have carried out 50 suicide bombings and attacks in the region, killing 71 people and injuring 85.