Seven dead after attack on Indian army camp

SRINAGAR: Four Indian soldiers and three suspected militants were killed after rebels stormed a paramilitary camp in disputed Kashmir, officials said.

Gunmen in combat dress entered the camp near Southern Lethpora village early yesterday firing guns and grenades at the sentry, said paramilitary spokesman Rajesh Yadav.

He said soldiers inside the camp were responding to the attack, which left at least three soldiers wounded.

The initial assault left one paramilitary soldier dead and two wounded.

Police said reinforcements of army soldiers and counterinsurgency police encircled the camp and were exchanging gunfire with the assailants.

In the subsequent fighting, two more paramilitary soldiers were killed and another soldier died of cardiac arrest while being evacuated along with others who were trapped in the camp’s residential buildings.

Yadav said troops recovered the bodies of three suspected militants and they were searching a building in the camp for another militant.

The camp is located along the strategic highway connecting the Kashmir Valley with India and close to the chain of plateaus famed for Kashmir’s saffron fields.

Besides counterinsurgency operations, the camp also serves as a training centre for soldiers.

No rebel group fighting against Indian rule immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.

Anti-India unrest has simmered in Kashmir since a popular rebel leader was killed over a year ago. — AP