4 killed, 30 injured as powerful explosion rips Peshawar

A powerful explosion ripped through a market in Peshawar city in northwest Pakistan on Monday, killing at least four persons hours after a suicide car bombing by the Taliban in Karachi killed eight persons.

The explosion targeted a shop selling CDs in Nishatarbad area of Peshawar, officials said. A woman was among the dead.

More than 30 people were injured by the blast, which triggered a massive fire that engulfed several buildings, shops and cars.

The bomb was hidden in a motorcycle, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Senior Minister Bashir Bilour told the media.

The blast was heard from several kilometres away.

Rescue efforts were hampered by a power outage in the area. The injured were taken to a nearby hospital.

Footage on television showed several shops on fire as thick smoke rose over Nishtarabad Chowk.

No group claimed responsibility for the attack. The Taliban have carried out a wave of attacks on shops selling music and movies across northwest Pakistan in the past four years.

Earlier in the day, a suicide bomber rammed his explosives-laden car into the home of a senior police officer in Karachi, killing eight persons, including a woman and her 12-year-old son.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it was carried out to avenge the killing of militants by the police officer.