Four Indian soldiers killed in clashes in Indian-administered Kashmir

Indian soldiers provide security as Hindu devotees begin their pilgrimage to the cave shrine of Amarnath from a base camp in Pahalgam on June 29, 2024. (AFP/File)

• Fighting broke out after militants ambushed an army convoy in the Malhar area, an officer says
• India and Pakistan both claim Muslim-majority Kashmir in full and have fought three wars over it

NEW DELHI: Four Indian soldiers were killed and at least six others were wounded in gunbattles with militants in Indian-administered Kashmir, a senior police officer said Monday.
The officer, who was not authorized to speak to the media, said fighting broke out after militants ambushed an army convoy in the Malhar area of Jammu.
This is the latest incident in an uptick of attacks in the disputed territory.
On Sunday, two soldiers and six suspected militants were killed in two separate gunbattles in villages in the Kulgam district, police said.
India and Pakistan both claim Muslim-majority Kashmir in full and have fought three wars for control of the Himalayan region.
Rebel groups have waged an insurgency since 1989, demanding independence for the territory or its merger with Pakistan.
The conflict has killed tens of thousands of civilians, soldiers and rebels.
In June, nine Indian Hindu pilgrims were killed and dozens wounded when a gunman opened fire on a bus carrying them from a shrine in the southern Reasi area.
It was one of the deadliest attacks in years and the first on Hindu pilgrims in Kashmir since 2017, when gunmen killed seven people in another ambush on a bus.