Kashmir: 4 cornered militants killed by Indian forces

By Zahid Rafiq

SRINAGAR, Jammu and Kashmir

Four militants were killed in southern Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday morning when Indian forces attacked a house the militants were hiding in.

In a statement, the police said that they set up a cordon and search operation after getting credible intelligence about the presence of militants in the Hanjan-Payeen market in the Pulwama district.

“In the ensuing gunfight, four militants were neutralised and their bodies were recovered,” police said.

As soon as the gunfight started, civilians from the adjoining villages came out onto the streets, hoping to give the militants a chance to escape.

Scores of civilians were wounded with pellets and stone injuries, according to health officials, while one suffered a firearm injury.

“We've received over 16 wounded since the morning. All of them are stable,” Dr. Javaid Ahmad, a health official in Pulwama, told Anadolu Agency.

Jammu and Kashmir, a Muslim-majority Himalayan region, is held by India and Pakistan in parts and claimed by both in full. A small sliver of Kashmir is also held by China.

Since they were partitioned in 1947, the two countries have fought three wars -- in 1948, 1965 and 1971 -- two of them over Kashmir.

Also, in Siachen glacier in northern Kashmir, Indian and Pakistani troops have fought intermittently since 1984. A cease-fire came into effect in 2003.

Some Kashmiri groups in Jammu and Kashmir have been fighting against Indian rule for independence, or for unification with neighboring Pakistan.

According to several human rights organizations, thousands of people have reportedly been killed in the conflict in the region since 1989.