ISLAMABAD, Pakistan  Militants stepped up their fight against the Pakistani government on Friday, striking a building belonging to the country’s main intelligence agency in the northwestern city of Peshawar, Pakistani television reported.

The early morning explosion killed at least eight people and wounded more than 30 in what has become a grimly familiar cycle of violence. Peshawar, a bustling city on the edge of Pakistan’s western frontier, has been particularly hard hit, with near daily bombings that have unsettled residents and interrupted daily rhythms.

“Peshawar seems to have become the main target,” said Hasan Askary, an analyst, speaking on Dawn Television.

Image Pakistani soldiers secured the Inter-Services Intelligence building after a bomb blast in Peshawar on Friday. Credit... A Majeed/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

The bombing’s location left no doubt about the insurgent’s motive: Pakistan’s intelligence agency is a symbol of the power of the military, which has been conducting a campaign against Taliban militants in the western mountains of South Waziristan.