Updated

Government officials say dozens of militants armed with rocket-propelled grenades and automatic weapons attacked two tribal police posts in northwest Pakistan, killing two policemen.

Twenty-one other policemen are missing and presumed kidnapped.

The officials say the attacks occurred before dawn Thursday in the town of Darra Adam Khel in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The town is located near Pakistan's tribal region, the main sanctuary for Taliban militants in the country.

The officials say security forces have launched an operation to try to recover the 21 missing policemen. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. Suspicion will likely fall on the Pakistani Taliban, who have been waging a bloody insurgency against the government.