PESHAWAR: A bomb exploded at a police checkpoint in northwestern Pakistan, killing one officer and wounding two others, police said.

Local police officer Zahir Shah said the bomb went off at a barricade outside a mud-brick police post on Saturday in the town of Shabqadar, which lies close to the Mohmand tribal region.

The area is a hotbed for militants fighting the government, and has witnessed many such attacks in recent years.

In May, a pair of suicide bombers targeted recruits as they were leaving the main paramilitary training centre of Shabqadar, killing 80 people. The Pakistani branch of the Taliban militant organisation claimed responsibility.