Suspected militants exploded a car bomb in a market in Peshawar, crowded with women and children on Wednesday, killing 105 people and turning shops selling wedding dresses, toys and jewellery into a mass of burning debris and bodies.

The attack in the northwestern city of Peshawar was Pakistan's deadliest since 2007 and came as US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton visited the country to offer support for its fight against a strengthening al-Qaida and Taliban-led insurgency based along the Afghan border.

Clinton was three hours' drive away in the capital meeting Pakistani government leaders when the bomb went off in Peshawar. Her trip was not announced in advance in Pakistan for security reasons.

The bomb was directed squarely at civilians, unlike many previous blasts that have targeted security forces or government or Western interests. While no one claimed responsibility, the bomb appeared aimed at undercutting public and political support for an ongoing army offensive against militants close to the frontier and showing that the government was unable to keep its people safe.

The shaky, US-backed government said the bombing - the latest in a series this month - had strengthened its resolve to press ahead with the assault in the South Waziristan border region, a militant stronghold and a global training and operations hub for al-Qaida.

At least 60 of the dead were women and children. Most security analysts said the attack could backfire on the insurgents and lead more people to inform on them.

"He who kills a Muslim has no place but hell," said Mumtaz Ali, a wounded 19-year-old who was studying in a Muslim school attached to a mosque that was damaged in the attack. "We are taught the way of the prophet. We are not taught to kill innocent people."

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