ELECTIONS '98
COMMENTARY
SPECIALS
INTERVIEWS
CAPITAL BUZZ
REDIFF POLL
DEAR REDIFF
THE STATES
YEH HAI INDIA!
ARCHIVES

10 soldiers killed in landmine blast in J&K

Mukhtar Ahmed in Srinagar

In a deadly escalation of violence, 10 armymen were killed and eight others injured in three separate incidents across Jammu and Kashmir on Monday.

Police said eight houses were destroyed in a blaze at Shatlu Rafiabad in North Kashmir during a fierce gun battle between militants and security personnel.

Seven soldiers were killed on the spot when an army vehicle hit a landmine at Mughal Maidan in Jammu's Doda district this morning. Five were seriously wounded. The area has been cordoned off, and senior security officials are supervising combing operations.

An unconfirmed report said another jawan succumbed to injuries while being shifted to hospital.

The armymen were on their way to Chatroo village, where the Rashtriya Rifles had mounted a massive combing operation late Sunday.

Two days ago, five soldiers were wounded in a blast on Bharat road.

At Chatroo, three armymen died in an encounter. A police official said two unidentified militants were also killed.

Late Sunday, government troops raided Shatlu Rafiabad in Barramullah district. They came under heavy fire, which resulted in injuries to two soldiers and a junior commissioned officer. The troops retaliated but the militants escaped.

During the gun battle, eight houses and a few cowsheds were destroyed.

In Srinagar, civilians and two BSF jawans received injuries when militants hurled a grenade at a crowd.

UNI

Tell us what you think of this report