At least 16 killed in attack on mosque in Pakistan

At least 16 people, including five police officers, have been killed after a vehicle loaded with explosives rammed into a mosque in north-western Pakistan, according to a senior police official in Peshawar.

A gun battle is still ongoing between attackers and security forces at the mosque, near police headquarters, in the Kohat district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

One of the assailants has reportedly been killed, an officer says, and a rescue operation is under way.

In a statement, Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari expressed "his best wishes for the swift recovery of those injured in the explosion."

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police chief inspector general Zulfikar Hameed described the attack as a "suicide attack" to Reuters news agency.

Militancy in Pakistan's border areas has risen sharply in recent months, targeting the military and police.

Islamabad says the militants use safe haven in Afghanistan to train and plan attacks in Pakistan.

Afghanistan's Taliban government has denied the accusation and said militancy is Pakistan's domestic problem.