Four Indian soldiers were killed in the Kashmir region administered by New Delhi during clashes between the army and suspected militants in this disputed area in the Himalayas, security officials reported on Thursday. The Indian army stated that "intense gunfire" was recorded on Wednesday as soldiers pursued militants in the dense Kala Kote forests in southern Kashmir. The "White Knight Corps" reported on Wednesday evening that "the terrorists were injured and trapped." An army officer and a police official, speaking on condition of anonymity to the Agence France-Presse on Thursday, confirmed that four soldiers were killed, including two special forces personnel.
The Kashmir region, which has a Muslim majority in the Himalayas, has been divided between India and Pakistan since the independence of the two countries in 1947, with both countries claiming full sovereignty over it. The neighboring countries have fought three wars over control of this region, and a militancy movement that began in 1989 in the New Delhi-administered area has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths. New Delhi accuses Islamabad of encouraging these attacks, which Pakistan denies. Last week, Indian soldiers killed eight militants in the Kashmir Valley, the center of the insurgency. In 2019, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist government revoked the partial autonomy of Jammu and Kashmir and placed it under direct administration.
