5 Rebels Killed in Indian Kashmir

Indian army soldiers stand next to the arms and ammunition recovered near the bodies of suspected rebels after a gunbattle at an army base in Prang, northeast of Srinagar, India, Aug. 30, 2013.

Indian police said government forces have killed five suspected rebels in a gunbattle in India-controlled Kashmir.

Officials said the army and police launched a joint operation early Friday in a forested area about 35 kilometers from Srinagar, the summer capital of Indian-administered Kashmir.

Authorities said most of the rebels had been members of the Hizbul Mujahideen, the largest Kashmiri militant group fighting Indian forces in the region.

Kashmir is divided between India and Pakistan and claimed in full by both. The Himalayan region has been plagued by more than two decades of separatist violence.