SRINAGAR: Four army soldiers and three civilians were killed in India-held Kashmir on Sunday, a defence ministry spokesperson claimed, in the bloodiest gunbattle in the disputed region since April.

Defence ministry spokesman Colonel Rajesh Kalia claimed that an army patrol noticed some movement along the Line of Control in the early hours of Sunday morning.

Army troops were rushed to the area and the movement was tracked by surveillance devices, he said.

“A heavy gunbattle followed in which three militants were killed,” he claimed. The Indian army official’s account could not be verified independently.

It is worth noting that dozens of civilians have been killed in the recent past by the Indian army after being declared 'militants’.

Four army soldiers were killed in the gunbattle and another two were injured, Col Kalia said.

The fighting in Kupwara district started at around 1am local time and intermittently continued for hours, he said.

This is the highest number of army casualties along the Line of Control since April this year. Five Indian troops and an equal number of civilians were killed in April when the latter were challenged by Indian troops in the area.

Published in Dawn, November 9th, 2020