ISLAMABAD — Bomb-making material allegedly stored at a compound by Pakistani Taliban fighters exploded before dawn Monday in the country’s restive northwest, killing at least 24 people, including militants and civilians, police and security officials said.
But conflicting accounts later emerged with a local lawmaker claiming the deaths were instead caused by airstrikes in the Tirah Valley of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
There was no comment from the military and security officials dismissed the claim of a strike as baseless.
Earlier in the day, local police officer Zafar Khan said the massive explosion killed at least 10 civilians, including women and children, along with 14 militants.
But hours later, lawmaker Suhail Afridi told the provincial assembly that all those killed were civil