SRINAGAR, India: Two suspected militants from Pakistan and three Indian troops were killed on Wednesday in a fierce gun battle in the Indian zone of divided Kashmir, a military spokesman said.
The gunfight took place in Kashmir's Nowgam sector, 100 kilometres (60 miles) from the summer capital Srinagar, as the rebels tried to cross into the Indian side.
"An infiltration bid was foiled by troops on the Line of Control, killing two militants, but three soldiers were also killed," Colonel A. Vashisht said, referring to the de facto border that divides the Himalayan region.
In another encounter late Tuesday, police claimed to have shot dead a commander of the Pakistan-based militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) in a gunfight in south Kashmir.
"A most wanted militant commander affiliated with LeT was killed by a joint search party of the police and army," a police officer said.
Separatist violence in the region has dropped sharply since India and Pakistan started a peace process in 2004 but occasional gunfights erupt between militants and the security forces.
India accuses Pakistan of backing Islamist militants on its side of the divided region, a charge Islamabad denies. (Reuters)
