Indian policemen stand guard behind a barricade, which was set up to restrict movement of people in Srinagar. -Reuters Photo

SRINAGAR: Indian security forces on Wednesday killed two militants in separate firefights in Indian-administered Kashmir, police said.

Officers said the two rebels slain during search operations in southern Kashmir were senior members of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) guerrilla force, blamed by India for the 2008 siege in Mumbai in which 166 people were killed.

“Intensified operations are part of a strategy to prevent militants from entering into the Indian side of Kashmir,” a senior official said on condition of anonymity.

Wednesday's killings took to three the number of suspected LeT rebels shot dead by Indian troops in the Himalayan region since Monday.

India blames Pakistan for backing militants in its zone of divided Kashmir, a charge Islamabad denies.

The South Asian rivals have fought two of their three wars over Muslim-majority Kashmir, which is held in part by each but claimed in full by both.