Two Hizbul militants killed in Kashmir gunfight

Two separatist guerillas of the Hizbul Mujaheedin militant outfit were gunned down by security forces in a village in south Kashmir's Pulwama district, police said Sunday.

Troops of 44 Rashtriya Rifles (RR) and special operations group (SOG) of the state police surrounded a house in Narpora village in Pulwama Saturday afternoon after a tip-off that a group of militants were holed up inside.

"As the troops challenged the hiding militants to surrender, they opened fire at the security forces, who returned the fire. In the ensuing gunfight, during which the house was destroyed, the two militants were killed," a police spokesman said here.

Pulwama is about 45 km from here.

The two slain militants were identified as Aiyaz Ahmad Shah alias Janbaz and Bajeer Kalas, the official said, adding that arms and ammunition were recovered from them.