Accessibility links

Breaking News

Attack on Security Base in Indian-controlled Kashmir Leaves 4 Dead


Indian army soldiers take their positions near a security camp during a gunbattle with suspected militants on the outskirts of Srinagar, Indian-controlled Kashmir, Oct. 3, 2017.
Indian army soldiers take their positions near a security camp during a gunbattle with suspected militants on the outskirts of Srinagar, Indian-controlled Kashmir, Oct. 3, 2017.

A group of suspected militants has stormed a paramilitary base near the Srinagar airport in Indian-controlled Kashmir.

Three of the militants and an Indian soldier were killed Tuesday in the ensuing gun battle.

Security officials say the militants, dressed in army uniforms, hurled grenades and opened fire with automatic weapons on the base, which houses members of India's Border Security Force. The base shares a common border wall with the airport.

Kashmir has been the center of a deadly tug-of-war between India and neighboring Pakistan since the end of British colonial rule in 1947. The Muslim-majority Himalayan territory is divided between the nuclear-armed rivals, but both claim Kashmir in full.

Kashmir rebels have battled Indian forces for decades, demanding either independence or a merger with Pakistan. The rebels have staged a series of attacks on Indian security bases in recent months, including an attack in southern Kashmir in August that left eight security officials dead.

New Delhi has accused Pakistan of training and arming the rebels to carry out the cross-border attacks, a charge that Islamabad denies.

  • 16x9 Image

    VOA News

    The Voice of America provides news and information in more than 40 languages to an estimated weekly audience of over 326 million people. Stories with the VOA News byline are the work of multiple VOA journalists and may contain information from wire service reports.

XS
SM
MD
LG