Pakistan opposition leader Benazir Bhutto was assassinated as she left a public rally today.

Ms Bhutto, twice the country's prime minister, was shot in the neck and body by a suicide bomber who then blew themselves up as she was driven from the rally in the city of Rawalpindi.

A senior military official confirmed that Ms Bhutto had died in the explosion that also killed at least another 20 people.

She had just addressed thousands of people in a public park as part of her campaign for the country's parliamentary elections which are due on January 8.