Sharjah 24 – AFP: Six suspected rebels and a soldier were killed during two separate clashes in Indian-administered Kashmir overnight, police said Thursday, rounding off another bloody year in the disputed territory.
Indian police said the six killed in two villages belonged to the Pakistan-based group Jaish-e-Mohammad, claiming two of them were Pakistani nationals.
India has long accused Pakistan of facilitating cross-border attacks in the territory, which has been divided between the two since 1947 and which both claim in full. Islamabad denies the charge.
Rebel groups have fought Indian forces for over three decades, demanding freedom for Kashmir or its merger with Pakistan, which has controlled part of the region since after independence.
A police statement issued Thursday said one of the four government forces personnel wounded in the clashes died of bullet injuries in a hospital.
Officials say that at least 380 militants, nearly 100 civilians, and over 80 security forces personnel have been killed in the region since August 2019.
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