The blast occurred at Chamkani, a suburb of Peshawar, the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

"At least three people were killed in an explosion in a rickshaw near a police check point," local police official Shaukat Ali told AFP.

One of the victims appeared to be of Uzbek origin, Ali said, referring to Central Asian militants among Taliban ranks.

"According to bomb disposal squad's initial report the explosion may have been caused by the explosives being transported or planted in the rickshaw," he added.

Ali said that two bodies were reduced to small pieces by the explosion.

Senior police official Rahim Shah confirmed the blast and casualties, and said that police were investigating.

(APP)