Sixteen dead in India mosque blast, protests

Police disperse a crowd using water cannon near the site of a bomb explosion as people protest in the background in Hyderabad, India. AP Photo/Mahesh Kumar A)

HYDERABAD, India, Saturday (AFP) - The death toll from a bomb attack on a mosque in southern India and subsequent clashes between police and Muslim protesters has risen to 16, officials said today.

Police had earlier said that 10 people died from Friday's blast at the 17th-century Mecca Mosque in Hyderabad city and four others had been killed in the ensuing violent protests that prompted police firing. Two more people died from their injuries Saturday, officials said.

“The toll now is 16 -- 11 in the blast and five in the police firing,” said Andhra Pradesh state chief minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy at a press conference. Fifty-six people were still being treated for injuries in hospital while three had been discharged, Reddy added.

An improvised explosive device blew up near an area where 1,000 worshippers were reciting prayers, said officials in Hyderabad, one of India's most developed cities and a high-tech hub. As many as 10,000 people were in the mosque at the time, reports said.

India went on high security alert late on Friday to avert possible sectarian violence between Muslims and Hindus, a home ministry spokesman said.