A suicide car bomb has killed at least 25 people in northwest Pakistan near the border with Afghanistan.

The blast ripped through a market on a road outside the garrison town of Kohat Friday morning.  Police say several shops and vehicles were destroyed in the explosion.

The bombing is the second attack in two days in the small town.  On Thursday several people were wounded when a bomb exploded outside a shop.

The inhabitants of Kohat are mainly Shi’ite Muslims.  But Pakistan’s population is majority Sunni, as are the Taliban and other Islamist militants who permeate the volatile region.  There is a history of violence between Sunnis and Shi’ites in the area.

Pakistan’s government launched an offensive in late April aimed at clearing militants from the area. 

The military says it has driven out most of the Taliban, but sporadic fighting persists. 

Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.