The Pakistani Taliban has claimed responsibility for a bomb blast near a market in Rawalpindi.
Spokesman for the banned Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) Shahidullah Shahid said the group had carried out the attack in Rawalpindi.
He added that the blast was in response to the ongoing military operations in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) and the killing of the militant leader Waliur Rehman.
At least 13 people were killed and many feared injured in the blast near the R.A. Bazaar in Rawalpindi on Monday.
According to Dawn News, the market is also near the General Headquarters of the Pakistani military.
Superintendent of Police Potohar said that six army personnel and seven civilians lost their lives in the blast.
The injured were taken to nearby hospitals and most of them were said to be in a critical condition.
Security forces had cordoned off the location of the blast and launched a search operation.
