Police today fired rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse hundreds of people who burned the American national flag in the Indian portion of Kashmir, protesting against the hanging of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.

A FOUR-YEAR-OLD child sold by his mother for less than $20 has been dubbed India’s “marathon boy” after he ran 65 km (40 miles) yesterday, but critics accused his coach of risking the boy’s health for cash.

Cheered by thousands, a four-year-old Indian boy ran 40 miles today to enter the country’s foremost record book.

In a likely suicide attack, unidentified militants blew up a security fence today and stormed a northern Indian Hindu shrine at the heart of a bitter sectarian dispute, setting off a fierce gunbattle with security personnel that left five other attackers dead.

Two powerful land mines exploded in a crowded residential area in the Indian portion of Kashmir today, killing six people and wounding 40 others, a paramilitary officer said.

A lone militant stormed a building housing soldiers in Indian-controlled Kashmir in an apparent suicide attack, killing nine soldiers and wounding 10 before being shot dead after a 12-hour gunbattle.

Voters fled as suspected Islamic separatists attacked a polling station today during the final round of voting in Indian-held Kashmir.