At least 80 people have been killed in a suicide bombing in the Afghan city of Kandahar - in what appears to be the deadliest attack since 2001.
The blast hit a crowd of people watching a dog-fighting competition.

"Sixty of the martyrs were brought to hospitals and 20 more dead bodies were taken from the site," Governor Assadullah Khalid told reporters.

"This suicide attack was the work of the Taleban," Mr Khalid said. The Taleban have not admitted the blast.

But it bears all their hallmarks, says the BBC's Jon Brain in the Afghan capital.

They have a significant presence in the area from where they carry out suicide attacks and roadside bomb blasts.

Last week, the Kandahar governor himself was the target of an attempt on his life.

Last year, violence in Afghanistan reached its highest levels since the Taleban were forced from power in 2001, analysts say.

Body parts

Dog-fighting competitions are a favourable pastime in Afghanistan. They were banned by the Taleban regime.

At least 300 people were attending the event on the outskirts of Kandahar, including militia leaders said to have been the target of Sunday's attack.




Major attacks on Afghanistan

"Fighting had just started between two dogs. Suddenly I heard a huge explosion next to a police vehicle. Then I saw lots of people dead and wounded," Abdul Karim told the AFP news agency.

Body parts were scattered in the area as paramedics rushed the wounded to hospitals.

The Taleban claim to have influence across most of the country and have extended their area of control from their traditional heartland in the south.

They are able to operate freely even in Wardak Province, neighbouring the capital Kabul, as a BBC camera crew who filmed them recently found.