Islamabad, Dec 12 (IANS): Twenty-three Pakistan Army soldiers were killed in a "terror attack" on a checkpost in Dera Ismail Khan's Daraban area on Tuesday.

Six terrorists attacked the security post in the early hours of December 12, Pakistani media outlet Dawn reported, citing the military's media affairs wing.

"The attempt to enter the post was effectively thwarted which forced the terrorists to ram an explosive laden vehicle into the post, followed by a suicide bombing attack. The resulting blasts led to the collapse of the building, causing multiple causalities; 23 brave soldiers embraced shahadat, while all six terrorists were effectively engaged and sent to hell," the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said.

Tehreek-e-Jihad Pakistan, a new group affiliated with the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), claimed responsibility for the attack.

This is the military’s highest single-day death toll from terrorist attacks reported this year. Before this, 12 soldiers were martyred in separate military operations in the Zhob and Sui areas of Balochistan in July, the media report said.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), caretaker Interior Minister Sarfaraz Bugti condemned the "terrorist attack on the police station" and expressed deep sorrow over the loss of lives.