RECENT UPDATE! ‘Militants’ killed in Kashmir gun battle

The Indian military says two armed militants who had taken up positions in a government building in Indian-administered Kashmir have now been killed.

This followed a three-day standoff between the soldiers and militants near the town of Pampore on Wednesday.

On Monday, militants had entered an empty government building near Pampore town on the outskirts of the main city of Srinagar.

‘Tricky’

Troops, paramilitary soldiers and police surrounded the building while firing rockets, grenades and flame throwers, reports said. The militants fired back with hurled grenades and automatic weapons.

Major General Ashok Narula of the Indian army described the operation as “tricky” and said the fighting was protracted because “the building was enormous and we did not want collateral damage”.

Another building in the same compound was targeted by militants in February when the resulting gun battle left nine people dead.

The newest fighting comes last month after an assault on an Indian army base killed 18 soldiers. India blamed Pakistan, which denied the claim for the attack.

The nuclear-armed neighbours have accused each other of increasing hostilities along their de facto border in Kashmir since the attack of last month.

Pakistan denied that India had carried out any strikes and said two of its soldiers were killed in unprovoked cross-border shelling.