Deadly two-day operation against rebels concludes in Kashmir

SRINAGAR, India – Indian officials say government forces have ended a two-day operation against rebels fighting against Indian rule in disputed Kashmir in which 10 combatants died.

Police said Thursday that troops cleared explosives from a remote forested village in northwestern Kupwara region where fighting began early Tuesday and ended overnight.

Five government troops, including three soldiers and two counterinsurgency police, and five suspected insurgents were killed in the fierce fighting.

Nuclear-armed India and Pakistan each administer part of Kashmir, but both claim it in its entirety.

Anti-India sentiment runs deep in Kashmir, which in recent years has seen renewed rebel attacks and repeated public protests against Indian rule.

Rebels have been fighting Indian rule since 1989, demanding Kashmir be made part of Pakistan or become an independent country.