From correspondents in Jammu and Kashmir, India, 04:31 PM IST

Two separatist guerrillas were killed in a gunfight, lasting several hours, with security forces in north Kashmir Friday, police said.

Troops of 13 Rashtriya Rifles and Special Operations Group (SOG) of the local police surrounded a house in Hartar village near north Kashmir's apple-rich Sopore town, 54 km from here, Friday morning following specific information about the presence of guerrillas there.

A senior police officer told IANS that the militants were asked to surrender but started firing at the security personnel, leading to a gunfight which lasted several hours.

'Two militants -- one a foreigner belonging to the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) outfit and the other, a local belonging to Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) -- were killed in the gunfight,' the officer said, adding that the security forces did not suffer any casualty.

(Staff Writer, © IANS)