Three soldiers and a woman were killed in a militant attack in a south Kashmir village on Thursday, police said.
Two officers, a Lt. Colonel and a Major, and three more soldiers were injured in the attack owned by Hizbul Mujahideen, the largest militant group in Jammu and Kashmir.
The Major is reportedly in critical condition.
Police said the security forces were returning from a search operation when they were ambushed near Kungnoo village of Shopian district, some 50 km from here.
A soldier died on the spot while two others succumbed to their injuries later, the police said.
The woman was hit by a bullet inside her house, the police said.
"Reinforcements were rushed to the area to track down the attackers," a police officer said.
More From This Section
A caller identifying himself as Burhan-ud-Din, a Hizb spokesman, told a Srinagar-based news agency that the group carried out the attack.
--IANS
sq/sar/mr