13 militants, 3 soldiers among 20 killed in Kashmir fighting
srinagar — Twenty people have been killed in Jammu and Kashmir in some of the fiercest fighting this year in the restive Himalayan region, police said on Sunday, as authorities braced for more violence.
A total of three soldiers and 13 suspected militants died in several clashes south of Srinagar.
Two civilians were also killed and dozens injured when police opened fire on thousands of demonstrators who poured onto the streets, throwing stones and chanting slogans.
There were also demonstrations in Srinagar, where authorities ordered all schools shut on Monday as rebel groups called for protests.
Seven of the militants were killed along with two soldiers in a protracted shootout in the village of Dragad, where helicopters were seen swooping low over the battle zone.
Another man, described as a militant, was gunned down in a brief exchange of fire in Dialgam.
Security forces were still taking fire from gunmen in the village of Kachdora, where one soldier and three insurgents had been killed, local police chief Shesh Paul Vaid said. “It is a massive operation. The fight is still on,” inspectorgeneral of police Swayam Prakash Pani said.
Last year was the deadliest of this decade in the region, with more than 200 alleged militants killed in a counter-insurgency offensive dubbed “Operation All Out”. That upsurge in violence has escalated in 2018, with 49 militants already killed this year.
The weekend clashes were the worst since a three-day skirmish in the forests of northern Kashmir last month left ten dead — five unidentified militants and five troops. —