JAMMU, Feb 10: Kashmir has launched a probe into claims that the army used five civilian porters as human shields in a gunfight with fighters during which the non-combatants were killed, an official said on Tuesday.

Kashmir state Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, during a visit to Jammu, said the deaths set back his process of reconciliation in the region. "I have given orders for holding an inquiry into the deaths of the five porters and I shall talk to the army commander also so that a thorough probe is conducted by him," Sayeed said. -AFP