SRINAGAR, Indian-controlled Kashmir, Nov. 21 (Xinhua) -- A fresh gunfight between militants and Indian troops broke out on Tuesday in restive Indian-controlled Kashmir, police said.
The gunfight erupted at village Zirhama of Kupwara district, about 96 km northwest of Srinagar city, the summer capital of Indian-controlled Kashmir.
"A new gunfight has triggered today late afternoon between militants and government forces in village Zirhama of Kupwara," a police spokesman said.
"The army, paramilitary and police contingents cordoned off the area on specific intelligence inputs about the presence of militants. As the contingents moved closer to the suspected area, it was fired upon, triggering a gunfight," the spokesman said.
Police officials suspect the presence of two to three militants in the area.
Earlier in the morning, three militants belonging to Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) were killed in a fierce gunfight in Handwara area of the district.
Last week six militants of LeT and an Indian air force (IAF) commando were killed, while an army trooper wounded in a gunfight in Bandipora district of the region.
LeT outfit is accused of carrying out a terror attack on India's financial capital Mumbai in 2008. The attack claimed 166 lives.
A guerilla war is going on between militants and Indian troops stationed in Indian-controlled Kashmir since 1989. The gunfight between the two sides takes place intermittently across the region.
Kashmir, the Himalayan region divided between India and Pakistan, is claimed by both in full. Since their independence from Britain, the two countries have fought three wars, two exclusively over Kashmir.
