Two kids wounded after stones thrown at Kashmir school bus

At least two children were injured when a school bus carrying students came under attack from a stone-pelting mob in a south Kashmir village on Wednesday, police said.

The incident took place in Zawoora village in the volatile south Kashmir district of Shopian.

"The injured children were shifted to a hospital where doctors referred one of them to Srinagar for specialised treatment," an official said.

The attack on the school bus drew a sharp reaction from Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti, who vowed that the miscreants behind the incident will be brought to justice.

"Shocked and angered to hear of the attack on a school bus in Shopian. The perpetrators of this senseless and cowardly act will be brought to justice," she tweeted.

The police has taken cognisance of the incident and a hunt for the miscreants was underway.

In a separate incident, at least four civilians were injured, one of them critically, in clashes with the security forces near a gunfight site.

The clashes erupted after security forces laid a cordon around Turkawangam village following information about the presence of a group of militants there, but came under fire from the hiding militants sparking off a gunfight, police said.

"At this, youth resorted to heavy stone pelting on the security forces to break the cordon. Tear smoke shells and pellets were used to quell the protests," a police officer said.

Doctors in Shopian district hospital said four civilians had reported with injuries at the hospital.

"Three injured persons had gunshot injuries. One of them identified as Inayat has sustained critical injuries," said a doctor.

In more violence on Wednesday in Shopian, the house of a ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) MLA was attacked with a petrol bomb.

Police said unidentified persons hurled the bomb at the house of Muhammad Yusuf in Memander village. "A portion of the house caught fire but it was immediately doused," a police officer said.

--IANS

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