January 8, 2002	Tuesday	Shawwal 23, 1422

AMRITSAR, Jan 7: The death toll of an accidental landmine explosion on the Indian side of the India-Pakistan border rose to 22 on Sunday with five more hospitalized victims dying of injuries, police and eyewitnesses said.

The four soldiers and one civilian died in a military hospital in Amritsar. The number of soldiers killed in the explosion now stands at 18.

With heightened tensions between India and Pakistan in the last two weeks, Indian army soldiers have been laying landmines along the border.

Eyewitnesses said some soldiers were unloading a truck filled with landmines on Saturday while others were fixing fuses on the mines at the village of Mahwa, about 20 kilometres northwest of Amritsar.

“The soldiers were busy working on the devices when suddenly we saw the truck rolling back. In a second, there was a massive explosion. We just ran to save our lives,” said farmer Ranjit Singh. “The bodies of the dead were flung at least 7-8 meters (20-25 feet) away.”

Other eyewitnesses said the truck driver had reversed the truck to let a tractor pass on the narrow road, when it ran over a landmine.

The initial blast killed 14 soldiers and three civilians who were in the tractor, police said. At least 15 people, mostly soldiers, were in hospital — five in serious condition, according by doctors.

The army cordoned off the village immediately after the blast, fearing more landmines may go off. Engineers were working to defuse some of the remaining landmines.—AFP