At least 13 people have been killed and nearly 30 others wounded following an explosion on the outskirts of Pakistan's northwestern city of Peshawar.
The attack occurred on Sunday in the village of Matni, with reports saying a bomber blew himself up in a livestock market.
Al Jazeera's correspondent in Islamabad reported that Abdul Malik, the mayor of Matni, was killed in the attack.
Malik passed away on the way to the hospital, according to Liaqat Ali Khan, the police chief of Peshawar.
Malik once had close links to the Pakistani Taliban, but later switched sides and raised a lashkar, or local militia, to battle the fighters.
"Malik had survived several attacks on his life in the recent past, since he turned against the fighters, but today the fighters have finally killed him," Anis said.
He said nine of the wounded were in a critical condition.
Hospital officials said that two children were among the dead.
Limited damage
Al Jazeera's Imran Khan, reporting from Islamabad, said: "The damage could have been so much worse [but for] the fact that this wasn't a built-up residential area.
"This was an open field - a cattle market. So although the death toll was very high at 13 - and we think that's going to rise throughout the day - it could have been so much worse, as we have seen in Peshawar.
"An emergency has been declared at the local hospital where we have spoken to doctors there. They told us, "We are exhausted."
Our correspondent said nobody had claimed responsibility for the attack, pointing out that "normally, what we get is either claims or denial, pretty quickly after an attack".
Anti-government Taliban fighters have struck numerous times in Pakistan in recent weeks, killing more than 300 civilians and soldiers.
PHOTO CAPTION
Map of Pakistan locating Peshawar city.
Al-Jazeera