The Hizbul Mujahideen today struck at an Army convoy, injuring 36 soldiers, an Army spokesman said. Two civilians were also wounded. The landmine explosion on the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad Road comes amid efforts by Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf to negotiate a ceasefire with militants ahead of the SAARC summit.The blast at Lavawpora, 12 km from here, left the sideway of the national highway strewn with debris of bricks, glass shards and tin sheets. Dozens of houses by the road and vehicles were hit by the impact of the explosion. Traffic was stopped for sometime as the police and Army scoured the stretch and began a manhunt for the militants.The landmine, hidden in a makeshift tin-roofed shop, went off around 10.30 am when the Army convoy was moving towards the Uri frontier belt. A private bus carrying the troops and another Army vehicle were damaged in the blast. Splinters dented the bus which collided with a tree before grinding to a halt. A defence spokesman said 36 soldiers and two civilians were injured in the powerful blast. The condition of four of the jawans is critical.On Friday, militants had lobbed a grenade at Singhpora, eight kms ahead of today’s blast. The explosion killed a girl and hurt 12 others.
