A small group of militants armed with guns and suicide jackets attacked a mosque at an army facility in northwest Pakistan on Saturday, triggering a shootout in which four insurgents and two soldiers were killed, the military and officials said.

The army said 14 troops were also wounded in the attack on Ghalani Camp in Mohmand tribal region bordering Afghanistan, ABC News reported on Saturday.

It said in a statement that security forces "valiantly averted" an attempted suicide attack and killed all four militants.

The army said the attackers wanted to enter the camp and started firing after they reached the mosque, where residents and a large number of recruits gathered for an early morning prayer.

Shortly after the attack, Jamaatul Ahrar, a breakaway faction of the Taliban, claimed responsibility.

Ahsanullah Ahsan, spokesman for the group, said that the gunbattle between attackers and troops was still ongoing Saturday morning.

He said that the Ghalani Camp was notorious for torturing detained militants and that they carried out the attack to send a message to the outgoing army chief Gen Raheel Sharif, who is retiring next week after completing his three-year tenure.

Source: MENA