Four Indian soldiers and a civilian have been killed in a fierce gunfight with suspected militants in India-controlled Kashmir as New Delhi launches a manhunt following a deadly car bomb attack against a convoy of its forces in the troubled region.
Monday that the exchange of fire broke out during the Indian army’s search operation in the Pulwama district, located 40 kilometers south of Kashmir’s main city of Srinagar.
Indian troops had cordoned off Pinglan Village in the Pulwama district, acting upon a tip-off about the presence of up to three suspected militants inside a house in the area.
The Indian troops fired warning shots during the search, prompting the suspected militants holed up in the house to respond, the source.
Pulwama was the site of a huge car bombing that hit a convoy of Indian forces on Thursday, killing 44 of them.
The deadly attack was claimed by the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) militant group, one of the several militant groups which fight Indian rule over Kashmir.