2 rebels, 1 soldier killed in gunbattles in Indian Kashmir

SRINAGAR, India  — Two suspected rebels and an army soldier were killed in two gunbattles near the Line of Control separating the Indian- and Pakistani-controlled parts of Kashmir, police said Sunday.

Two militants were killed in fighting with soldiers Sunday after they entered Indian Kashmir from the Pakistani side in the Keran sector of the border, said local police officer Garib Das.

Late Saturday night, an Indian army soldier was killed and two others wounded after a group of militants crossed over from Pakistan in the nearby Tangdar sector of the border, Das said.

Army soldiers were searching both areas, but dense fog was hampering their operations, he said.

Kashmir is divided between India and Pakistan. Both claim it in its entirety and have fought two wars over the region since they won independence from Britain in 1947.

India accuses Pakistan of arming and training insurgents who have been fighting since 1989 for Kashmir's independence or merger with Pakistan, a charge Islamabad denies. More than 68,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed in the fighting.