Rebels Killed in Indian Kashmir Gun Battle

Government forces in Indian Kashmir killed three suspected rebels Tuesday during a lengthy gun battle, police said, in the latest flare-up ahead of tense local elections later this year.

Soldiers cordoned off a house in Hanjan village, some 40 kilometers (25 miles) south of the main city of Srinagar, on Monday evening after receiving a tip-off that militants were inside, a police officer told AFP.

The rebels then opened fire, sparking armed exchanges which went on till early morning, the officer, who was not authorized to speak to the media, told AFP.

"All the three militants died during the gun battle," he added.

Another police officer, Vijay Kumar, told reporters that all three of the victims were local men.

Kashmir is divided between India and Pakistan, with both partially administering it separately, since the two nations won independence from Britain in 1947.

The nuclear-armed South Asian rivals claim the disputed Himalayan territory in full.

Since 1989 fighting between about a dozen rebels groups, who seek independence or a merger of the territory with Pakistan, and Indian forces has left tens of thousands, mostly civilians dead.

The latest fighting happened after multiple clashes between suspected rebels and government forces last week left five of them and three soldiers dead in the north of the disputed territory near the de facto border with Pakistan known as the Line of Control or LoC.

A report Sunday in a local daily Greater Kashmir, quoting an unnamed federal interior ministry official in New Delhi, said 60 militants have "infiltrated" this year into Indian Kashmir from across the LoC.

The official said the government forces were cautioned about a "likely spurt in militant actions in the coming months" as the territory is gearing up for state elections expected in November or December.