Bomb explodes near mosque in northwest Pakistan; 1 killed

A bomb exploded near a mosque in the northwestern Pakistani town of Nowshera on Friday, killing at least one man and wounding nearly 20, hospital officials and witnesses said.   

The death toll may rise as the blast took place when the mosque was crowded for midday Friday prayers.                                           

Pakistan has seen a wave of suicide attacks in the past three years, many in the country's northwest frontier region with Afghanistan, where the Pakistan military is battling Taliban insurgents.  

The army has launched a series of offensives over the past two years in Pakistan''s northwest, which it says have weakened the Taliban.                                           

Analysts, though, question their effectiveness because militants usually go on to establish strongholds elsewhere.