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12 Killed, Four Dozen Injured in 2 Kashmir Explosions
Twelve people were killed and nearly 50 injured in two explosions and a gunbattle in Indian-administered Kashmir on Sunday, police said.
Four civilians and two soldiers were killed when a public bus was targetted in a powerful landmine explosion near Kreeri township, 45 kilometres (30 miles) north of the Kashmiri summer capital Srinagar.
The blast injured another 22 people, including eight soldiers.
A police spokesman said suspected Muslim guerrillas used a remote-controlled device to trigger the explosion.
The blast took place at 10:15am (0445 GMT) and left a huge crater on a rough link road connecting Kreeri with neighbouring Patan township.
Police said the militants had used 20 kilograms (44 pounds) of RDX plastic explosive.
Hospital sources said the conditions of four of the wounded civilians and three soldiers were critical.
Meanwhile, two civilians and a policeman were killed and 20 others, injured in a grenade explosion at Rajpora village, near Pulwama town, 30 kilometres (18 miles) south of Srinagar.
The grenade was tossed at a security patrol, but missed its target and exploded among a crowd of pedestrians.
In another incident, Indian police shot dead three Muslim militants who were trying to sneak into the Indian zone of divided Kashmir from Pakistan, a state government spokesman said.
"Alert villagers saw seven men crossing the border into India. They alerted the police and our troops immediately swung into action. Three of the intruders have been killed," K.D. Jandiyal told AFP.
Jandiyal said the firefight with the militants was still continuing at Kanachak, west of the Kashmir winter capital Jammu.
More than 34,000 people have died in Kashmir, India's only Muslim-majority state, since the launch of an anti-Indian rebellion 12 years ago in the Himalayan region.
Tensions were running high in Srinagar on Sunday following the overnight death in police custody of an activist of the regional Muslim League party.
Residents in the Kashmiri summer capital said Mushtaq Ahmad Bhat was arrested Friday night and that he died in the custody of anti-insurgency commandos of the state police department.
The police, however, described Bhat as a wanted militant and said he was killed in an encounter.
The Muslim League is a constituent of the All-Party Hurriyat Conference, an umbrella forum of Kashmiri separatist groups which is planning to open a dialogue with Pakistan-based anti-Indian guerrilla forces.
The Hurriyat strongly condemned Bhat's killing and called for an independent probe. (Agencies)
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