Three school children were killed in Indian Kashmir today when a bomb they were playing with exploded, police said.
One other child was wounded in the explosion in Kupwara district, which borders Pakistan. It is an area where gunbattles between security forces and guerrillas fighting Indian rule in Kashmir are common.
Over 50 people have died in a string of guerrilla attacks in Muslim-majority Kashmir since last Friday, including a raid on two Hindu temples in Jammu, the southern winter capital, in which 13 died.
India has blamed Pakistan for the renewed violence in the state, where a new regional-based party took power this month promising to heal the wounds of the 13-year revolt.
But Islamabad denies sponsoring the militants and says it only gives moral and diplomatic support to the Kashmiri people in what it calls their struggle for self-determination. Over 35,000 people have died in the revolt.