Islamabad, Jan 14 (IANS): Five Pakistani soldiers were killed and two others, including an officer, injured after an improvised explosive device (IED) blast targeted a security vehicle in the Buleda area of Balochistan's Kech district, the media reported.

Separately, security forces killed four militants in two intelligence-based operations (IBOs) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's North Waziristan and Dera Ismail Khan districts, Dawn reported.

In the Kech incident, the security forces vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb while returning to the Gillisar checkpoint after patrolling, the Dawn reported.

Makran Commissioner Saeed Ahmed Umrani confirmed the details of the attack.

"An improvised explosive device planted by the roadside was detonated when the vehicle of the security personnel was passing through the area," he told the Dawn by phone.

Following the blast, a brief exchange of fire also occurred with the attackers, who eventually fled the scene.

Meanwhile, the first operation in KP took place in Mir Ali tehsil of North Waziristan, where an exchange of fire resulted in the death of two militants, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said.

These militants -- identified as Commander Tabbasum a.k.a. Qadarman and Sajid -- were engaged in numerous acts of terrorism, including attacks on security forces, the ISPR said, the Dawn reported.

In a separate joint operation by the police and the security forces in the Kulachi area of Dera Ismail Khan district, two more militants were eliminated.