Armed men in Pakistan have opened fire on a vehicle carrying Pakistan's religious affairs minister, wounding him and killing his driver, police say.

The attack on Hamid Saeed Kazmi took place on Wednesday, close to his office in the Islamabad, the Pakistani capital.

Kamal Hyder, Al Jazeera's Pakistan correspondent, said: "The attacker, who is said to have been armed with an assault rifle, peppered the car with bullets ... after that the gunman was able to make good an escape, [while] the car lost control and went into a tree."

Muntizar Hassan, a police officer, said that Kazmi had survived the attack but that his driver had been killed.

Kazmi was said to have been shot in the leg. A bodyguard was also wounded in the attack.

Television pictures showed several bullet holes in the vehicle.

Kazmi, who belongs to the Barelvi sect of Sufi Islam, has been a vocal critical of the Taliban in Pakistan.

The Pakistani army launched a campaign in April to clear Taliban fighters from Swat and Buner, two valleys a few hours drive from Islamabad.

Pakistan's major religious parties quickly moved to condemn the attack on Kazmi.