Indian forces killed three suspected Islamic militants in Indian-controlled Kashmir, ending a two-day hostage standoff and sparking angry protests that injured dozens of people, police said Tuesday, according to AP. «The siege is over. We have killed the three militants and rescued all the five civilians,» said Hemant Lohia, a senior police officer who supervised the operation. Later Tuesday, thousands of people gathered in the remote village of Palnu, some 95 kilometers (60 miles) south of Srinagar, to bury the dead gunmen and to protest the police operation in Kashmir. Police beat the protesters with bamboo batons and fired tear gas and warning shots into the air to disperse the protesters, who pelted security forces with rocks and stones, said police officer Bashir Ahmad. Police and witnesses said dozens of people were wounded, though neither could give exact figures. Each side blamed the other for starting the violence.
