Five rebels killed as infiltration bid foiled in Kashmir (Roundup)

Srinagar, Kashmir - Security forces on Saturday killed five Muslim militants, three of whom attempted to infiltrate the Line of Control, which divides the disputed Kashmir region between India and Pakistan, Indian officials said. Indian troops guarding the border had spotted militants in the thickly forested Gurez sector, 123 kilometres north of the state capital Srinagar, a Defence Ministry spokesman said. 'The soldiers asked them to surrender, but they refused, and a gunbattle began after they opened fire,' Lieutenant Colonel JS Brar said in Srinagar. He said a military operation was continuing because more rebels were suspected to be in the area. Two more militants were killed in separate gunbattles with soldiers in southern Kashmir overnight, the army said. One of them was identified Liaquat Ali, a senior commander from the Hizb-ul-Mujahideen militant outfit. Ali was wanted in several incidents of bomb explosions and shooting in the Doda district, officials said. Senior Indian Army officials accuse Pakistan of helping militants infiltrate into the Indian side of the Line of Control to carry out attacks. The infiltration incident came days after Indian Defence Minister AK Antony accused Pakistan of not acting against militants sneaking into the state, even after the terrorist attacks on Mumbai in November, which killed more than 160 people. Kashmir is located in the Himalayas, and the Line of Control runs through rough mountain terrain that is snowbound for large parts of the year. Nuclear-capable neighbours India and Pakistan have fought two wars over the disputed region. India-administered Kashmir has seen a violent separatist militant movement that peaked in the late 1980s. India accuses Pakistan of aiding the militants and allowing them to run training camps across the Line of Control. Pakistan denies the charge and calls Kashmiri militants freedom fighters.