Military says 3 militants killed in Kashmir were behind the massacre that sparked a clash with Pakistan

Three suspected militants killed in a gunbattle in the disputed region of Kashmir were responsible for a shooting massacre in which more than two dozen people died and that led to a military clash between India and Pakistan earlier this year, an Indian government official said yesterday.

The Pakistani nationals were killed Monday in a joint operation by the military, paramilitary and police on the outskirts of Kashmir’s main city of Srinagar, Home Minister Amit Shah said in India’s lower house of parliament. The Associated Press couldn’t independently verify the details.

Rifle cartridges found at the site matched those used during the killings in April, Shah said. The bodies of the men were identified by residents who had provided food and shelter to them before they carried out the massacre, he said.

It wasn’t clear whether the locals were considered accomplices. There was no immediate response from Pakistan’s government.

But state-run Pakistan Radio reported after the gunbattle on Monday that India had planned “fake encounters” targeting Pakistani nationals held in Indian prisons. It provided no further details.

Pakistan has long accused India of staging gunbattles in Kashmir and sometimes pulling Pakistani prisoners from Indian jails and killing them in faked shootouts while passing off them as combatants. New Delhi has regularly rejected these allegations and accused Pakistan of sending armed militants into India and orchestrating attacks.

The massacre more than three months ago killed 26 people, mostly Hindu tourists. India blamed the attack on Pakistan, which denied responsibility, while calling for a neutral investigation. It led to tit-for-tat military strikes by India and Pakistan. SHEIKH SAALIQ, NEW DELHI, MDT/AP