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Sixteen Killed in Kashmir Explosions, Gun Battles
Land mines and gun battles rocked the restive Kashmir region Sunday, leaving 16 people dead and many others injured as rebel separatists appeared to carry out their pledge to increase violence two days before India's Independence Day celebrations.
Two land mines exploded under buses carrying paramilitary troops near Kud, a village 80 kilometers (50 miles) north of Jammu, the winter capital of the Indian-controlled Kashmir. Five border guards were killed and at least 33 wounded in the first explosion, caused when a Border Security Force bus hit a land mine.
Another border guard died in the second attack, which occurred along the same road as the first after traffic resumed about two hours later. The buses were part of a convoy carrying security forces to Srinigar, 300 kilometers (185 miles) to the north, ahead of Tuesday's Independence Day celebrations.
Hizbul Muhahedeen, the largest separatist group in Kashmir, has claimed responsibility for both bus attacks. "We are committed to end Indian rule in Kashmir and our activities will escalate," Salim Hashmi, a Hezbul Mujahedeen spokesman in Islamabad, Pakistan, told The Associated Press.
Later in the day, an army foot patrol sighted militants in a remote mountainous area 260 kilometers (160 miles) north of Jammu and opened fire. An ensuing gun battle left 10 rebels dead, Maj. Gen. P.P.S. Bindra said. No army causalities were reported in that incident.
The army described the killings as a major success in its intensified anti-militancy operations.
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