The chief security officer of President Asif Ali Zardari of Pakistan has been killed by a suicide bomber in Karachi.
Bilal Shaikh and two other aides died in the blast, which took place near an office of Mr Zardari's Pakistan People's Party.
Several other people are reported to have been wounded in the explosion.
A police escort was accompanying Mr Sheikh's armoured car when the attack took place.
The bomber detonated the explosives beside the vehicle when the security chief stopped to get out of his car.
The BBC reports Mr Sheikh survived an assassination attempt near his home in Karachi about a year ago.
No group has said it was behind the bombing.
