ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's president and prime minister condemned the deadly bomb attack on New Delhi's High Court on Wednesday and said they hoped those responsible would be brought to justice.

The powerful bomb, hidden in a briefcase, ripped through a busy crowd outside the court, killing at least 11 people and wounding dozens more.

A foreign office statement attributed to President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani condemned the attack on arch-foe India.

“The Pakistani leadership has expressed their deepest sympathies to the families of the victims of the bombing, to the government and people of India."

“They have expressed the hope that the perpetrators of this heinous act will be brought to justice.” The device had been placed near an entrance gate reception area, where more than 100 people were queueing for passes to the court complex, located in the heart of the Indian capital.

It was the first major attack on Indian soil since triple blasts in Mumbai on July 13 killed 26 people.

Relations between nuclear-armed rivals India and Pakistan remain severely strained over the Mumbai assaults in 2008, which left 166 people dead and were blamed on militants based in Pakistan.