Pakistan ? Three suspected militants allegedly planning suicide attacks died today when a bomb detonated early, police said, in the latest violence near the Afghan border where 12 people were killed in a missile attack a day earlier.

On Tuesday, more than 500 students chanting “Death to America” protested Pakistan’s support for the U.S.-led fight against terrorism, as the government said that security forces would show “no leniency” in the conflict with Islamic militants.

The three men were killed in a home on the outskirts of Peshawar, capital of the North West Frontier Province, police officer Farid Shah said.

“Initial evidence suggests that they were suicide attackers,” Shah said. “They were preparing for an attack but the explosion occurred.”

Pakistan – a close U.S. ally in the war against terrorism – has seen a surge in militant-linked, mainly in its tribal regions along the border with Afghanistan, in recent days where security forces have battled with Islamic fighters, leaving scores of people dead.

Nationwide violence tied to militancy has killed 370 people this month, according to an Associated Press tally based on information by military and other officials.