A blast at a bus terminal in Pakistan's northwestern tribal region has killed at least 29 people and injured dozens. Security officials said that victims of the explosion in the Jamrud Bazaar area of Khyber had been taken to local hospitals.

"The explosives were packed in a pickup van which was detonated with a remote-controlled device," said Jamil Khan, a senior security officer in Khyber, one of seven tribal districts where the Taliban and al Qaeda have hideouts and insurgents have been battling government forces.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. However, tribesmen said that members of the pro-government Zakhakhel tribal militia had been targeted. They were filling their vehicles at a nearby fuel station when the bomb exploded.

The attack comes amid conflicting reports of peace talks between Islamabad and the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), an umbrella group of various militant organizations that is allied with the Afghan Taliban.

The TTP network has carried out multiple bomb and gun attacks across Pakistan since July 2007, when it vowed to overthrow the government after the military launched operations against insurgents.

Author: Anne Thomas (dpa, AFP, Reuters)
Editor: Darren Mara