Indian army troopers walk back towards their base camp after a fierce gunfight at village Chowgam-Qazigund in Kulgam district, about 72 km south of Srinagar city, the summer capital of Indian-controlled Kashmir, Sept. 15, 2018. Five militants were killed Saturday in a fierce gunfight with joint contingents of army and police in restive Indian-controlled Kashmir, police said. The gunfight broke out in village Chowgam-Qazigund in Kulgam district, about 72 km south of Srinagar city. (Xinhua/Javed Dar)
SRINAGAR, Indian-controlled Kashmir, Sept. 15 (Xinhua) -- Five militants were killed Saturday in a fierce gunfight with joint contingents of army and police in restive Indian-controlled Kashmir, police said.
The gunfight broke out in village Chowgam-Qazigund in Kulgam district, about 72 km south of Srinagar city, the summer capital of Indian-controlled Kashmir.
Reports said two troopers were also wounded while fighting the militants.
"In a fierce gunfight today, five militants were killed at Chowgam," a senior police officer posted in Kulgam told Xinhua. "The militants were holed up inside a residential house and from there they were firing using automatic weapons on the positions of police and army, who jointly has cordoned the house to track the militants."
According to officials, the area was cordoned off Friday night on specific intelligence information suggesting presence of militants and gunfight started early Saturday.
A guerilla war is going on between militants and Indian troopers stationed in the region since 1989.
Apart from Saturday's gunfight, during this week seven militants were killed in three different gunfights across the region.
Kashmir, the Himalayan region divided between India and Pakistan, is claimed by both in full. Since their independence from Britain, the two countries have fought three wars, two exclusively over Kashmir.
