Suicide bomber kills 2 troops in Pakistani Kashmir: The Washington Post, June 26

By RYAN LUCAS, AP
ISLAMABAD — A suicide bomber blew himself up early Friday near an army vehicle, killing at least two soldiers in the first such assault in Pakistan’s part of divided Kashmir, the military said, marking a possible escalation in the militant campaign against security forces.
The attack took place in Muzaffarabad, the region’s capital. The military said in a statement three other soldiers were wounded and rushed to a nearby hospital.
Although Pakistan has witnessed scores of such attacks in recent months, Friday’s blast was the first in its portion of Kashmir, which is divided between Pakistan and archrival India. Both nations claim the mountainous region in its entirety.
For the past 20 years, India has accused Pakistan of harboring Islamic militants in the region and helping them sneak across the boundary into its part of the Himalayan enclave to launch attacks on Indian security forces – although Pakistan has always denied giving anything more than moral and diplomatic support to the rebels.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for Friday’s attack, but it could signal that Taliban militants facing Pakistani army offensives in the northwest of the country are prepared to retaliate against Pakistani forces in Kashmir as well.
Also Friday, a roadside bomb exploded near a military convoy near Miran Shah, the main town in the troubled region of North Waziristan, wounding at least three soldiers, two local intelligence officials said, requesting anonymity as they were not authorized to speak to media.
North Waziristan is part of the rugged, lawless tribal belt along Pakistan’s border with Afghanistan and a Taliban stronghold.
The violence comes as the Pakistani military winds down its offensive against militants in the northwestern Swat Valley and gears up for an operation against Taliban leaders in South Waziristan. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/25/AR2009062501589_pf.html