Gunmen kill 3 police officers in central Pakistan

Islamabad: Pakistani police say two gunmen shot and killed three police officers in an attack on a patrol in the central city of Faisalabad.

Police officer Hidayat Ali says the two gunmen escaped on a motorbike after the shooting late today on a busy road of the industrial city.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the assault but a local affiliate of the Islamic State group claimed a similar attack on police patrol in capital, Islamabad, last week.

The previous claim came through a statement circulated online. One officer was killed and two wounded in the Islamabad attack.

Pakistan's interior minister, Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, denies the existence of any IS affiliate or branch in the country, saying militants operating for different groups invoke the name of IS to spread fear.