BOMB EXPLODES OUTSIDE CHINA'S RULING COMMUNIST PARTY PROVINCIAL HEADQUARTERS

A series of devices packed with ball-bearings exploded outside a provincial headquarters of China's ruling Communist Party, police and reports said.One person was killed and eight injured in the attack in the northern province of Shanxi, according to a police statement.Ball bearings were seen scattered around the scene, China's official Xinhua news agency reported. They are often used by bomb-makers to increase the chances of blasts inflicting injuries.State broadcaster CCTV reported that some of the explosives detonated in flowerbeds at the entrance to the party provincial commission.Xinhua quoted two witnesses near the site who said they heard a loud noise, then saw smoke, followed by a minivan exploding.Images showed several fire engines on a road, which had been blocked to traffic, and a large crowd on one side of the street.About 20 cars parked 100 metres away from the site had been damaged, CCTV reported, and local firefighters and police were conducting rescue work and an investigation.