Kashmir party elects new leader

The Indian junior foreign minister, Omar Abdullah, has formally taken over the leadership of the ruling National Conference party in Indian-administered Kashmir.

He succeeds his father the Chief Minister of the region, Farooq Abdullah.

Addressing thousands of party supporters after a ceremony in the summer capital, Srinagar, Omar Abdullah pledged to work to restore the level of self-rule the region enjoyed until 1953 which covered all areas except defence, finance and communications.

In a break from the party's earlier stand, he said he would welcome a dialogue between the Indian Government and separatist leaders.

In a separate development, a newly-formed militant group Al-Madina Regiment says it carried out an attack on Sunday, in which two grenades exploded near the venue of the ceremony.

The same group said it was behind an attack last week in which the chief minister narrowly escaped injury.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service