Suspected rebels attack major Indian army base in Kashmir

Srinagar : A group of suspected rebels attacked a major Indian army base in Kashmir Sunday near the heavily militarised defacto border that divides the disputed territory with Pakistan, police and army said.

The militants sneaked into the army's infantry base in Uri, about 100 kilometres west of the main city of Srinagar, where hundreds of soldiers and senior army officers are stationed.  

"Unknown number of militants got inside the Uri brigade headquarters area just before dawn and started firing," a senior police officer who was not authorised to speak to media told AFP on condition of anonymity.

There was no information on any causalities and exchange of fire between soldiers and the militants was ongoing, the officer said.

Army spokesman Colonel S. D. Goswami said the militants first attacked a base of an infantry battalion close to the dividing line known as the Line of Control or LoC.

Kashmir has been divided between India and Pakistan since the two gained independence from British rule in 1947. Both claim the Himalayan territory in full.

Indian-administered Kashmir has been in the grip of widespread protests against Indian rule for more than two months, sparked by the killing of a popular rebel leader in a gun battle with soldiers on July 8.

At least 87 civilians have been killed and thousands injured in the deadly protests and clashes, the worst violence to hit the region since 2010.

Several rebel groups have for decades fought Indian soldiers -- currently numbering around 500,000 -- deployed in the territory, demanding independence for the region or its merger with Pakistan.

Tens of thousands of people, mostly civilians, have died in the fighting.