Pakistan blast kills 20 as Hillary praises army's strike at terror

A huge explosion rocked Pakistan's main north-west city of Peshawar today, killing 20 people and injuring at least 35.

The explosion coincides with the start of a three-day trip to the country by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. She was in the capital Islamabad, about three hours' drive away.

Islamist militants have struck numerous times in Pakistan this month, killing more than 200 people in retaliation for the army offensive in one of their north-west strongholds along the Afghan border. Fierce fighting has raged in South Waziristan over the last two weeks as the army tries to break the hold of militants. Thousands of civilians have been injured and fled the violence.

Mrs Clinton said the offensive was necessary not only for Pakistan's security but for the US and the wider world.

"I give the Pakistani government and military high marks for taking them on. That wasn't what they were doing before," she said.