17 Indian soldiers killed in militant attack on Kashmir base

Srinagar : Heavily armed militants killed 17 soldiers in a pre-dawn raid Sunday on an army base in Indian-administered Kashmir, the worst such attack for years in the disputed Himalayan region.

The rebels attacked the army brigade headquarters housing hundreds of soldiers in the town of Uri, close to the de facto border with Pakistan. They were armed with grenades and automatic rifles, an army official said on condition of anonymity. 

Four militants were also killed during the gunbattle with security forces that saw tents and other temporary shelters for the soldiers catch fire, the army said in a statement.

The encounter resulted in "heavy casualties. We salute the sacrifice of 17 soldiers who were martyred in the operation," the statement said.

The raid was the worst such attack for many years in the territory, where an armed rebellion against Indian rule erupted in 1989.

Rebels stormed an army camp in the Uri area in December 2014, killing 11 soldiers and police officers.

Soldiers are now searching the base, 100 kilometres (62 miles) west of the region's main city of Srinagar, for any more militants, the statement said.

Several injured soldiers have been airlifted to a military hospital in Srinagar, according to an army officer. Large numbers of soldiers are stationed at Uri after finishing their tour of duty of the disputed Muslim-majority region.

The region is in the grip of deadly unrest that has lasted for more than two months. Protesting residents are clashing almost daily with security forces in the worst such violence since 2010.

At least 87 civilians have been killed and thousands injured in the protests against Indian rule, sparked by the killing of a popular rebel leader in a gunbattle with soldiers on July 8.