Police massacred in Kashmir

Attacks on security forces continue despite a ceasefire

At least 16 policemen have been killed and nine others injured in an attack by militants in Indian-administered Kashmir.

A team of heavily-armed men aimed grenades, rockets and automatic gunfire at the police patrol in the mountainous district of Rajouri.

It is the biggest strike against the security forces since an Indian ceasefire began last November.

It is not yet clear which militant group was behind this attack and if the attackers suffered any casualties.

The condition of three of the injured policemen is said to be serious.

The policemen were returning from a village where they had been carrying out an investigation into an attack in which two civilians had been killed the previous day.

Additional troops have been despatched to the area to conduct a search for the militants.

Truce

The violence comes despite an Indian ceasefire, which has been in place since November.

It has been extended three times amid continuing attacks on the security forces and there has been considerable pressure on the government to withdraw the offer.

The BBC's Jill McGivering in Delhi says that some police officials have privately expressed their frustation at the ceasefire.

They say their hands were effectively tied while the militants strengthened their position.

The ceasefire was welcomed by the international community but rejected by the militants, who said it was a ploy by India to gain international sympathy.

Delhi said it was part of its efforts to bring peace to the region and end the insurgency.

More than 30,000 people have been killed in more than a decade of violence in Indian-administered Kashmir.