Politician among 9 killed in Kashmir

Rebels attacked the politician, Shaukat Bandey, late Thursday in the town of Baramulla, 55km north of the summer capital Srinagar.

Bandey, a key member of the youth wing of the regional Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) which belongs to the ruling coalition, was injured when rebels fired on his motorcade, police said.

Bandey died in hospital late Friday, police said.

After being reported earlier in satisfactory condition, he developed complications and his condition worsened suddenly, police said.

A civilian who was caught in the firing also died while a teenage girl was injured, police said.

The attack on Bandey was the latest in a string of rebel strikes against pro-India political figures in the mainly Muslim region. In October militants gunned down the state's education minister who was also a senior PDP leader.