Top Pakistan officers killed 'by Taliban'

Two senior Pakistani military officers and a soldier have been killed in a roadside bomb close to the border with Afghanistan.

The Pakistani Taliban have said they were responsible for the deaths.

One of the men who died was a major general - a rare high-ranking casualty in Pakistan's war against militants.

The blast happened as the Taliban outlined a number of pre-conditions it wants met before it will take part in peace talks with the government.

Senior figure

The three men were returning from inspecting the army's border posts in Khyber Paktunkhwa province when the blast happened.

According to the Associated Press news agency, the most senior of them - Maj Gen Sanaullah Niazi - was the top commander in Swat Valley, where the military carried out a major offensive against the Taliban in 2009.

Pakistani political parties have endorsed peace talks with the Pakistani Taliban to end a decade of fighting.

But the Taliban are demanding the release of prisoners and the withdrawal of troops from the country's tribal areas - where they mainly operate.

Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has pushed for negotiations, but it is unclear what steps he will take to facilitate this process, analysts say.