Over a Dozen Killed As Bombs Tear Through Three Indian Cities

At least thirteen people have been killed in a series of explosions that ripped through courthouse complexes in three north Indian cities, officials said.

 The blasts on Friday were reported from Lucknow, Varanasi and Faizabad, all in the populous state of Uttar Pradesh, according to the police.

 "I believe it is the handiwork of groups who are trying to spread terror in our country," Sriprakash Jaiswal, junior home minister, said.

Three bombs have been detonated almost simultaneously near courthouses in three cities in the state of Uttar Pradesh, northern India on Friday.
 
The explosions hit the cities of Lucknow, Faizabad and Varansi.
 
According to officials, the explosions occurred within five minutes of each other near the courthouses.

A series of near-simultaneous explosions ripped through courthouse complexes Friday in three north Indian cities, with blasts going off in Lucknow, Varanasi and Faizabad, killing at least 10 lawyers and injuring dozens of other people, officials said.

 
Federal authorities blamed militants trying to spark unrest between India's Hindu majority and Muslim minority, though a legal group noted all the blasts came in a state where lawyers had decided earlier this year not to defend terrorist suspects.

 
At least seven lawyers were killed in three explosions in Varanasi, one of Hinduism's holiest cities, said Brij Lal, a top official in Uttar Pradesh state, where all three cities are located.