Gunmen attacked tankers in Islamabad this morning transporting fuel to coalition troops in Afghanistan, police said, a move likely to delay the reopening of a supply route through Pakistan.
"There were at least 12 men carrying arms. They first opened fire and killed three guards and then set tankers on fire," said senior police officer Mirwaiz Niaz. Thirteen tankers were burnt, he said.
Pakistan will re-open a supply route for coalition troops in Afghanistan only once public anger over Nato incursions across the border from Afghanistan eases and security improves, the foreign ministry spokesman said on Sunday.
Militants threatened more attacks on tankers on Saturday to avenge the incursions, after setting fire to three dozen vehicles.
Angered by repeated incursions by Nato helicopters, Pakistan blocked a supply route for Nato troops in Afghanistan after one strike killed three Pakistani soldiers on Thursday in the northwestern Kurram region.
The Nato incursions and the closure of the supply route, now in its fifth day, have heightened tensions between the United States and Pakistan, whose long alliance is often uneasy.
Pakistan is under US pressure to crack down harder on militants in the northwest of the country, parts of which are described as a global hub for militants.