A grenade explosion in a busy market in Indian-controlled Kashmir wounds 9

A grenade onslaught astatine a marketplace bustling pinch shoppers successful nan main metropolis of Indian-controlled Kashmir has wounded astatine slightest 9 people

SRINAGAR, India -- An assailant threw a grenade astatine a marketplace bustling pinch shoppers successful nan main metropolis of Indian-controlled Kashmir connected Sunday, wounding astatine slightest 9 people, constabulary said.

The onslaught comes a time aft a suspected militant was killed successful a daylong gunbattle successful Srinagar, a uncommon occurrence successful nan metropolis wherever information is tight.

Police said an unidentified attacker hurled a grenade from a flyover bridge, apparently targeting a stationed paramilitary vehicle, successful nan main business halfway of Srinagar, wherever Sunday's flea marketplace is visited by thousands of people.

The grenade exploded successful nan midst of shoppers and vendors, wounding astatine slightest nine, constabulary said. All were taken to a infirmary and reinforcements of constabulary and paramilitary soldiers launched a hunt for nan attacker.

In nan past, Indian authorities person blamed rebels fighting against Indian norm successful nan disputed region for akin grenade attacks. Rebels person successful move accused authorities agents of carrying retired nan attacks to defame their movement.

“There tin beryllium nary justification for targeting guiltless civilians,” Kashmir’s Chief Minister Omar Abdullah wrote connected nan societal media level X. “The information servants of nan state must do everything imaginable to extremity this spurt of attacks astatine nan earliest truthful that group tin spell astir their lives without immoderate fear.”

India and Pakistan each administer a portion of Kashmir, but some declare nan territory successful its entirety. The nuclear-armed rivals person fought 2 of their 3 wars complete nan territory since they gained independency from British assemblage norm successful 1947.

Militants successful nan Indian-controlled information of Kashmir person been fighting New Delhi’s norm since 1989. Many Muslim Kashmiris support nan rebels’ extremity of uniting nan territory, either nether Pakistani norm aliases arsenic an independent country.

India insists nan Kashmir militancy is Pakistan-sponsored terrorism. Pakistan denies nan charge, and galore Kashmiris see it a morganatic state struggle. Tens of thousands of civilians, rebels and authorities forces person been killed successful nan conflict.