ALBAWABA - India's NDTV channel reported that during a joint operation which was launched by the Indian army and police, Two militants and four security officers were killed Wednesday in clashes in India's Jammu and Kashmir region.
Two Army officers, including a Colonel leading a battalion and a Major, as well as a Deputy Superintendent of Jammu and Kashmir Police, were killed in a battle with militants in the higher regions of the Kokernag district in South Kashmir, officials said on Wednesday. One soldier remained missing.
India's Kashmir police said their force had surrounded two men they said belonged to the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba militant group, AFP reported. "Our forces persist with unwavering resolve," police posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.
"In solemn tribute to the unwavering valor of Col Manpreet Singh, Major Ashish Dhonak & DSP (deputy superintendent of police) Humayun Bhat who laid down their lives leading from the front during this ongoing operation. Our forces persist with unwavering resolve as they encircle 2 LET (Lashkar-e-Taiba) terrorists including Uzair Khan," Indian police said in a statement.
Kashmir dispute
Kashmir, a Muslim-majority Himalayan territory, is held in sections by India and Pakistan, and fully claimed by both. China also controls a small portion of Kashmir. The two countries have fought three wars since separation in 1947: in 1948, 1965, and 1971. Two of them were in the skies over Kashmir.
Since 1984, Indian and Pakistani troops have clashed periodically in the Siachen glacier region in northern Kashmir. In 2003, a cease-fire was declared.
Some Kashmiri organizations in Jammu and Kashmir have been fighting for independence or merger with neighboring Pakistan against Indian control. According to many human rights organizations, thousands of people have been killed in the region's conflict since 1989.
