Five Indian soldiers, five militants killed in IHK gunbattle

SRINAGAR: Five Indian soldiers and five suspected militants were killed in a gunbattle near the border between India and Pakistan in the disputed region of Kashmir on Wednesday, a senior police official said.

The militants attacked security forces carrying out a search operation in forests around Kupwara, 95 kms north of Srinagar, said Shamsher Hussain, senior superintendent of police in Kupwara. The fighting had ended and the search operation was continuing, he said. India accuses Pakistan of training and arming militants and helping them infiltrate across the Line of Control that divides Kashmir. Pakistan denies those allegations.