Skip to main content

Five dead after Kashmir gun battle

  • Story Highlights
  • Five people dead and two others injured after shootout in Indian Kashmir
  • Security forces faced militants who oppose Indian rule in Himalayan territory
  • The dead comprised of three police officers, paramilitary soldier and a militant
  • Security forces raided house in Telbel, on outskirts of capital city of Srinagar
  • Next Article in World »
From journalist Mukhtar Ahmad
Decrease font Decrease font
Enlarge font Enlarge font

SRINAGAR, Indian-Administered Kashmir (CNN) -- A gun battle between security forces and militants fighting against Indian rule in the Himalayan territory of Kashmir left five people dead and two others injured Sunday.

art.police.gi.jpg

A soldier stands guard in Srinagar on March 20, a day after a bomb blast rocked the city.

The dead comprised of three police officers, a paramilitary soldier and a militant, a senior police official told CNN. Two other officers remained in serious condition Sunday.

The battle began when security forces raided a house in Telbel, on the outskirts of the capital city of Srinagar. The forces were acting on a tip that militants were hiding inside the house, the police official told CNN.

"As the security forces tried to enter the house, the holed-up militants sprayed automatic gunfire at the raiding party," the official said.

Authorities brought in reinforcements and the gun battle continued. One militant died but the others escaped, the official said.

The Indian Army has been carrying out search-and-cordon operations against militants in Indian-administered Kashmir since the current armed violence broke out here in 1989.

While the authorities here say 43,000 persons have been killed in the violence, various rights groups and non-governmental organizations have put the figure at twice that number.

Last week, 17 people were wounded when a blast hit the region's only highway overpass located near the Civil Secretariat -- Indian-controlled Kashmir's seat of government -- and the region's high court complex. E-mail to a friend E-mail to a friend

All About Jammu and KashmirIndiaSrinagarWar and Conflict

  • E-mail
  • Save
  • Print