SRINAGAR: Security forces in India-held Kashmir killed three suspected militants in a gun battle on Wednesday night and a protester during ensuing violence on Thursday.

The militants were killed following a night-long exchange of gunfire after police and soldiers cordoned off southern Kakpora village, said Indian army spokesman Colonel Rajesh Kalia. An Indian army officer was wounded.

Residents said troops used explosives to target the house the militants were firing from and set it on fire. Police recovered charred bodies of the three militants.

Hundreds of residents defied the security lockdown around the village and clashed with government forces in an attempt to help the trapped militants escape.

As news of the killings spread, thousands of people assembled in Kakpora for funeral prayers for the slain militants. Thousands more took to the streets in neighbouring Awantipora town, where protesters blocked a key highway connecting the Kashmir valley with India while chanting “Go India, go back” and “We want freedom”.

S. P. Vaid, director general of police for the territory, confirmed a protester was killed in the exchange.

Another police officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, said at least a dozen others were injured by pellets fired by government forces to disperse the angry crowd.

Government forces fired bullets, shotgun pellets and tear gas at rock-throwing protesters, according to witnesses and a police officer who spoke on condition of anonymity in keeping with department policy.

The officer said the slain man was a regular anti-India protester and “habitual stone-thrower” and had many cases registered against him with police. Local residents said the man was targeted by the government forces.

On Wednesday, Indian troops killed two Kashmiri rebels in a gun battle in northern Sopore area.

In recent years, Kashmiris, mainly youths, have displayed open solidarity with anti-India militants and sought to protect them by engaging troops in street clashes during military operations against the militants. The anti-India protests and clashes have persisted despite the Indian army chief warning recently that “tough action” would be taken against stone throwers during counterinsurgency operations.

Published in Dawn, June 23rd, 2017