Indian troops kill 3 rebels in Kashmir fighting

Police say three rebels have been killed in a gunbattle with Indian troops in disputed Kashmir.

Police say the fighting began early Sunday after government forces raided southern Khudwani village on a tip that rebels were hiding there and came under fire.

The fighting comes a day after suspected militants abducted and killed a police official in the same area.

Residents say the raiding troops torched two civilian homes where the rebels were trapped.

Anti-India sentiment runs deep in Kashmir, a Himalayan territory divided between India and Pakistan but claimed by both in its entirety.

Rebels have been fighting Indian control since 1989, demanding that the territory be united either under Pakistani rule or as an independent country.