World Bulletin/News Desk

Six security personnel were killed and many others injured on Saturday morning in a landmine blast in northwest Pakistan, officials said.

It comes after the Pakistani army’s recent air strikes in North Waziristan, which have reportedly killed 81 insurgents since Wednesday.

The landmine hit a military convoy on a routine patrol in Mohmand Agency, one of the seven semi-autonomous tribal areas of Pakistan, a senior military official told Anadolu Agency requesting not to be named.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, but security forces are almost sure of the Taliban's involvement.

The latest assault is regarded as a sign of escalating battles between security forces and the Taliban in the restive tribal region, in the wake of ongoing military air strikes.

They targeted insurgents based on 'precise information,' security forces say, but tribesmen claim that a majority of people killed in air strikes were common citizens, including women and children.

Pakistani intelligence agencies have warned Islamabad of a backlash in the form of suicide attacks and bombings on security forces.

The recent clashes seem to have dealt a blow to incipient peace talks that began in late March between the Taliban and the Pakistani government.