PESHAWAR/DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan, Aug 2 (Reuters) - At least 14 people ​were killed in a suspected suicide bombing outside ‌a police station in northwestern Pakistan on Sunday, a rescue group and a regional police official said, as the country battles widening ​insurgencies.

The explosion took place in the Kabal area ​of Swat, a district in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa ⁠province.

A pro-police rally of local residents was taking place ​in the same area on Sunday, but it was not ​immediately clear whether the rally was the intended target.

Fida Hussain, a regional police official, said the victims included five police officers and ​eight civilians. The 14th person was believed to be ​the suicide bomber, he told Reuters.

At least 18 people were wounded, according ‌to ⁠a police statement. It said an operation had been launched to arrest anyone who may have assisted the attack.

The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan militant group in a statement claimed responsibility ​for the attack.

Prime ​Minister Muhammad ⁠Shehbaz Sharif in a statement expressed "deep grief and sorrow over the suicide blast".

Militancy in ​Pakistan's border areas has risen sharply in recent ​months, ⁠targeting mainly the military and police.

The Pakistani government blames the Afghan Taliban for the escalation, accusing it of providing support ⁠to ​the militants. The Taliban government has ​denied the accusations.