NEW DELHI (Reuters) -
Indian soldiers killed five militants during an eight-hour gunbattle in a forest in one of the heaviest clashes in the disputed region of Kashmir in the past few months.
The firefight took place in the woods around the town of Shopian, said A.G. Mir, Inspector General of Police in Kashmir.
Muslim separatists have been fighting Indian forces in India's part of Kashmir since 1989.
India accuses Pakistan of training and arming the rebels in the part of Kashmir its neighbour controls and sending them to the Indian side, a claim Islamabad denies.
The Indian army says they have received intelligence that militants in the region may try to attack schools and civilian areas ahead of U.S. President Barack Obama's visit later this month.
Indian security forces shot dead a top Lashkar-e-Taiba militant in North Kashmir on Wednesday. The army identified the dead militant as Abu Sufiyaz, a Pakistani national. (Reporting by Fayaz Bukhari; Editing by Malini Menon)