Indian soldiers shot dead seven suspected militants who
tried to attack two army bases in northern Kashmir on Thursday, police said,
prompting anger from Pakistan as a crisis between the two neighbours over the
disputed region grows.
The attacks came after India and Pakistan exchanged more
gunfire across the frontier in Kashmir overnight, the Indian army said, despite
a 2003 ceasefire. The latest round of tensions started in July when protests
erupted after Indian forces killed a separatist leader.
Three suspected militants were shot in an orchard near
the army base in Kupwara district near the Line of Control, the de facto border
that divides Kashmir between India and Pakistan, which both claim the
Himalayan, Muslim-majority region.
Another four suspected militants were killed after they
fired at the Indian troops in Nowgam sector of North Kashmir, said police
superintendent Ghulam Jeelani.
India accuses Muslim Pakistan of backing the separatists
and helping them infiltrate Indian-ruled Kashmir. Pakistan denies this, saying
it only offers moral and diplomatic support to the Kashmiri people in their
campaign for self-determination.
Last week India announced its special forces had carried
out a strike against militants camped on the Pakistan side of Kashmir and
inflicted significant casualties.
Pakistan denied such a strike had taken place and
accused India of fabricating the raids for political reasons.
Pakistan's military chief said Pakistan would not
hesitate to take respond.
"Any aggression, born out of deliberate intent or
even a strategic miscalculation, will not be allowed to go unpunished and will
be met with the most befitting response," said General Raheel Sharif, the
head of Pakistan's military.
India said it has ample evidence to prove that a strike
was conducted but concerns regarding national security will be assessed before
releasing any proof.
On Wednesday night, militants from Pakistan
unsuccessfully tried to breach the Line of Control at two points in the Nowgam
sector and one at Rampur, an Indian army spokesman said.
Another army officer said that when soldiers fired at
them, the suspected militants fled back to Pakistan.
The two sides traded artillery fire across the Line of
Control in Nowshera, Pallanwala and Mendhar sections overnight, the Indian army
said.
Pakistan said India initiated the shelling, which often
increases along the Line of Control during periods of tension.
(Additional reporting by Drazen Jorgic and Asad Hashim in
ISLAMABAD Editing by Paul Tait, Robert Birsel and Raissa Kasolowsky)
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