SRINAGAR, 14 August 2007 — A powerful hand grenade explosion killed three civilians including a 13-year-old boy and wounded 20 others in the north Kashmir Bandipore town, 50 km from here, yesterday afternoon.
A senior police officer said militants hurled a grenade at a passing paramilitary Border Security Force (BSF) vehicle in the main market of Bandipore town yesterday afternoon, which after missing the intended militant target, exploded on the road, resulting in injuries to 23 persons.
“All the injured were taken to the local hospital where attending doctors referred 12 critically injured to various hospitals in capital Srinagar. Three critically wounded civilians including a 13-year-old boy, identified as Yasir Rafiq, succumbed to their injuries in Srinagar’s SMHS Hospital. Nine others with serious splinter injuries have been admitted to various hospitals in Srinagar,” a senior police officer here said. The officer said, “The blast site was surrounded and searched by the security forces.” No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.
Security forces in the entire Kashmir Valley are on maximum alert, carrying out area domination operations across the valley, to prevent militants from disruption of official functions in connection with the 61st Independence Day celebrations tomorrow. The separatists have called for a protest shutdown tomorrow.
Meanwhile, the Indian Army said it would wait for another 48 hours before they enter the 21 field ordnance depot (FOD) at Khandroo in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district that got destroyed in a devastating blaze on Saturday.
Lt. Gen. H.S. Panag, army’s northern command GOC told reporters in Awantipore yesterday, “We can enter the 21 FOD only after 48 hours from now which is the mandatory cooling period for such accidents.”
He said 43 bomb disposal teams were already working to sanitize the eight kilometers area around the FOD.
“Another 60 to 70 such teams are being airlifted to help the massive bomb clearance operation,” Gen. Panag said.
Asked to comment on the extent of damage and the capacity of the depot, the GOC said, “The capacity of the depot is a classified information and I cannot give you that. But, I categorically refute any terrorist claim of sabotage. The fire actually started accidentally when a major, two soldiers and two civilian laborers entered shed No. 16 of the camp. We have ordered an inquiry and we shall wait for the report,” he said.
