An explosion has killed two people in Spain, with authorities suspecting the blast was linked to “gender-based violence”.

The blast happened near a children’s playground in the town of Orio in the north of the country on Tuesday, according to local officials.

The man and woman were killed at around 5.30pm local time in the fishing town.

There was no indication any other people had been hurt.

The explosion occurred on a footpath bench.

News agency EFE, quoting police sources, reported that the preliminary investigation was looking at a package held by one of the victims as a possible source of the explosion.

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The head of the Basque region, Inigo Urkullu, described the explosion as a “tragic event supposedly caused by gender-based violence” without giving more details.

Mr Urkullu also asked for a minute of silence during a political rally, according to several local media outlets.

Orio has a population of around 6,000 and lies near the border with France.

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