J&K violence rises, 11 killed, 28 wounded

Violence has flared up in Jammu and Kashmir in recent weeks as it allows easier movement of terrorists across the region.

Three policemen and eight suspected separatist terrorists were killed in explosions and gun battles across Jammu and Kashmir, police said on Friday, as violence rose with the onset of summer in the troubled region.

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Two policemen were killed and six wounded after a grenade attack on a federal police camp in Kulgam district, south of Srinagar.

Hours earlier, suspected terrorists set off a bomb in the heart of Srinagar, wounding at least 16 soldiers in an army bus. The state's top terror group, Hizbul Mujahideen, claimed responsibility for the attack.

Elsewhere, eight terrorists and a policeman were killed and six soldiers wounded in separate clashes between terrorists and troops across the revolt-torn region in the last 24 hours, police said.

Violence has flared up in Jammu and Kashmir in recent weeks after the end of winter, as it allows easier movement of terrorists across the region and also lets them trek through the mountain passes into the state from the Pakistani side, officials say.

However, overall violence levels remain low compared to previous years, credited to a peace process between India and Pakistan, each of which claims the region in full but rules it in parts.