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Mukhtar Ahmad in Srinagar
Five armymen, including an officer, were killed and nine others seriously wounded when two militants of frontline Lashkar-e-Tayiba's suicide squad stormed a heavily guarded camp of Rashtriya Rifles at Lasipora in northern Kupwara late on Friday night.
Police sources said militants fired a rocket at the main entrance killing the sentry on duty. They then forced their entry into the camp firing rocket-propelled grenades.
The militants simultaneously fired from automatic weapons at soldiers who tried to engage them inside the camp. The cross-fire continued for over two hours before the fidayeens managed to escape under the cover of darkness.
Reinforcements were rushed to the spot and the area around the camp was sealed. No arrests, however, had been made at the time of filing this report.
Injured armymen are undergoing treatment and the condition of four of them is stated to be critical.
The officer killed in the attack has been identified as Captain Mukul Vastav.
Meanwhile, hundreds of people on Saturday morning blocked the Srinagar-Barramulla highway and raised anti-government slogans. They were protesting against the killing of two fellow villagers at Waripora Kreeri in Barramulla district.
Though the Army has said the two villagers -- Ghulam Hassan and Mohammad Sultan -- died in a cross-fire between militants and soldiers, protesters maintained they were eliminated by the security forces.
Police resorted to a mild lathi-charge and fired warning shots to clear the highway.
EARLIER REPORT Army captain, 3 soldiers killed in LeT suicide attack
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