ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - A suicide bomber attacked a military convoy near the Afghan border on Saturday, killing at least 24 Pakistani soldiers as thousands of troops deployed to thwart a call for an anti-government holy war.
Another bomb struck a convoy elsewhere in the border region early Sunday, killing more than 10 security personnel, police said.
The escalating violence along the frontier, a haven for Pakistani and foreign extremists, follows the government's bloody attack on Islamabad's Red Mosque that sparked calls for revenge from radical groups.
Pakistani commandos overran the mosque Wednesday, ending an eight-day siege with a hard-line cleric and his militant supporters. More than 100 died during the standoff.
With Sunday's attack, at least 63 people have been killed in bombings and shootings in the north since the Red Mosque crisis began July 3.
Twenty-nine troops were wounded in Saturday's attack in North Waziristan, one of the deadliest suicide bombings in Pakistan in recent months, said Army spokesman Maj. Gen. Waheed Arshad.
Although no one claimed responsibility, Arshad said he could not rule out the possibility that it was a reaction to the assault on the mosque.
On Sunday, a convoy of army and paramilitary troops was attacked by a suicide car bomber in Swat, a mountainous area of North West Frontier Province bordering Afghanistan, police officer Humayun Khan said.
However, Arshad, the Army spokesman, could not confirm a suicide bomber was involved, saying the convoy may have been struck by a roadside bomb. He said about 40 people were wounded but had no death toll.
The convoy was heading to Matta when it was hit by two bombs, another police officer said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media. A gun battle erupted after the bombings when assailants fired at a police station and a hospital in Matta, he said.
The police officer said information from the area was difficult to obtain because telephone lines were busy and police avoided using radios to prevent militants from intercepting the communications.
Military officials said Saturday that Pakistan has dispatched thousands of troops to the northwestern frontier to pressure outlawed Islamic militants preparing to launch a holy war against the government for its bloody attack on Islamabad's Red Mosque.
"With help from local tribal elders, we are trying to ensure that militants lay down their arms and stop issuing calls for jihad against the government," a senior military official said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.
Elsewhere in the northwest Saturday, suspected militants detonated a bomb that struck a vehicle carrying soldiers in the town of Bannu, wounding two, said area police official Mohammed Khan. Two rockets also were fired at a military checkpoint. No casualties were reported.
In the northwest's largest city, Peshawar, two 11-pound anti-tank mines attached to a timing device and battery were found in a car downtown. The car was parked in front of military-affiliated Askari Bank when a small explosion and fire in the vehicle alerted authorities.
Arshad said reinforcements had been sent to the northwest to beef up some 90,000 troops already in the region. Officials say the fresh troops have moved into at least five areas.
No new troops were sent to North Waziristan, but a spokesman for militants demanded that all existing checkpoints be removed there by Sunday.
Abdullah Farhad, who claims to speak for pro-Taliban militants, told The Associated Press the checkpoints violated a 2006 peace accord between the government and tribal elders.
The peace deal is still in effect, but militants have again started attacking government forces in the region. The government has targeted some militant hideouts.
