Militants Kill 7 in Attack on Pakistan Power Station

People wheel their relative who was killed during an attack by suspected militants on a power station, on the outskirts of Peshawar, April 2, 2013.

Pakistani police say dozens of suspected militants attacked a power station in the country's northwest, killing seven people and leaving thousands without electricity.

Officials say the assault took place on the outskirts of Peshawar, when about 50 militants, armed with mortars and rocket-propelled grenades, stormed the plant at after midnight Tuesday.

Police say the militants killed two people at the scene of the attack and abducted nine others. Five of those taken were later found dead in a nearby field. At least four power plant workers remain missing.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. Power has been restored to some of the areas left dark by the raid.

Taliban militants continue to launch frequent attacks in the semiautonomous tribal regions, despite efforts by the Pakistani military to stem them.

Violence has been increasing in the northwest as Pakistan prepares to hold provincial and general elections on May 11.