5 killed in suicide blast in Pakistan

 A suicide bomber targeted a police vehicle in Peshawar city of northwest Pakistan today, killing five persons, including a senior police officer, and injuring about 30 others, officials and witnesses said.

Superintendent of Police (Investigation) Hilal Haider, two policemen and two passers-by were killed when the bomber detonated his explosive vest, Superintendent of Police (City) Asif Iqbal said.

The bomber struck outside a police station near the famous Qissa Khwani Bazar in the heart of the capital of the restive Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province.

Some 30 injured people were taken to a nearby hospital, where officials described the condition of six persons, including a policeman, as serious.
A woman was among the injured.

The police vehicle was reduced to a mangled heap of metal.
Witnesses said they had seen blood and body parts at the site of the attack.
Police officials said the bomber's vest contained about six to seven kilograms of explosives.
Several shops, residential buildings and vehicles were damaged by the blast.

Qissa Khwani Bazar was closed soon after the blast, which created panic in the area.
Security forces cordoned off the area as members of the bomb disposal squad scoured the site for clues.

No group claimed responsibility for the attack though such incidents are usually blamed on the banned Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, which has killed scores of police and security personnel over the past five years.