Two militants gunned down in Kashmir

Two separatist guerrillas were killed in a fierce gunfight in south Kashmir's Pulwama district Monday, defence officials said. An operation was still on to see if there were other militants in the area.

"On information regarding presence of terrorists in area of Matrigam, a joint operation was launched by the army and Jammu and Kashmir Police today (Monday)," said a defence spokesman here.

Matrigam village is 42 km from Srinagar.

"During the operation, two Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) terrorists were killed. They were identified as Ikram Bhai, a foreign terrorist, and Farooq Ahmad Lone, a local terrorist belonging to Aglar village in Pulwama district."

"Both these terrorists were active in the area and were involved in a number of terrorist related incidents. Two AK-47 fifles along with ammunition were recovered from the terrorists. The operation was still on when the reports last came," the spokesman added.