Five people have been killed and at least 26 others injured after a massive bomb blast tore through a luxury hotel in the he northern Pakistan city of Peshawar.

Six of the injured have been taken to hospital in a critical condition and are being treated in the neurosurgery ward, while a massive security operation has been implemented with military units also surrounding the local hospital.

According to reports from the scene a truck entered the compound of the five-star Pearl Continental hotel prior to the high-intensity explosion.

The hotel is located in a high security zone in the heart of Peshawar City, next to many military and Government establishments.

The hotel is often used by visiting diplomats and reports from the scene say two UN personnel are among the injured.

Less than two weeks ago five people were killed and more than 60 injured when two bombs were detonated in a market in Peshawar.

The Peshawar blasts came just one day after a massive suicide car bomb was detonated in front of Pakistan security agency buildings in Lahore, killing at least 24 people and injuring hundreds more.

For the past couple of months the Pakistan military has been fighting pitched battles against the Taliban in the Swat Valley region and at the end of last month claimed to have regained control of the strategic city of Mingora, the largest city in the Swat Valley, from the Taliban.