Pakistan blast 'kills at least 30'
A suicide bomber has killed 30 people outside a bank near Pakistan's capital.
Meanwhile, the UN said spreading violence in the country had forced it to suspend long-term development work in the northwest regions along the Afghan border.
Islamist insurgents have carried out numerous attacks in Pakistan in recent weeks, killing some 250 people in retaliation for an army offensive in the Pakistan Taliban stronghold of South Waziristan.
The bloodshed, some of which has targeted aid workers, has threatened Western goals of reducing extremism's allure by improving Pakistan's economy.
Monday's explosion in Rawalpindi, a garrison city just a few miles from Islamabad, left bodies on the ground outside the bank and in a nearby hotel carpark, witness Zahid Dara said. The stricken area also lies close to the Army's main headquarters.
The attacker rode a motorbike to the scene, and the 30 people dead included military personnel, Rawalpindi police chief Rao Iqbal said. Some 45 others were wounded.
Pakistan's president, prime minister and other top officials condemned the blast but vowed to continue the offensive in South Waziristan, an impoverished and underdeveloped tribal region next to Afghanistan where al Qaida is believed to have hideouts.
The US supports the operation because it believes South Waziristan is a safe haven for Islamist extremists involved in attacks on Western troops in Afghanistan.
Washington has also stepped up its efforts to use development aid in a broader battle against spreading militancy. The US government recently approved 7.5 billion dollars (£4.6 billion) in aid over five years to improve Pakistan's economy, education and other nonmilitary sectors.
The UN decision to suspend long-term development work in Pakistan's tribal areas and its North West Frontier Province could complicate Washington's goal. The UN made its decision after losing 11 of its personnel in attacks in Pakistan this year, including last month's bombing of the World Food Programme's office in Islamabad that killed five people.
