Blast destroys bank in Barcelona

A powerful explosion has destroyed a bank in the north-eastern Spanish city of Barcelona.

The blast, at 0230 (0030GMT), hit a branch of the Caixa bank on calle Balmes, near the city centre.

Police have cordoned off the area, and it is not yet clear whether there are any casualties.

No one has yet claimed responsibility for the explosion.

On Thursday,a powerful car bomb was defused at Malaga airport in the south of the country.

The alarm was raised after a telephone warning by a caller claiming to be from the Basque separatist group, ETA.