Police killed in Kashmir attack

Indian troops have moved into the area

Nine policemen have been killed and a dozen others injured in a suicide attack by separatist militants in Indian-administered Kashmir.

A two-member militant suicide squad of the Lashkar-e-Toyeba group attacked a police camp at Handwara, 85 km (53 miles) north of Srinagar.

One militant died in an exchange of fire with the police, while another managed to escape.

The Indian Army has cordoned off a huge area around the camp and launched a manhunt.

The hardline Lashkar-e-Toyeba has warned that such attacks will continue.

"Two Fidayeen of Lashkar-e-Toyeba stormed the camp and inflicted heavy casualties. One Fidayeen escaped unhurt after the attack," a spokesman for the group, Abu Usama, said.

Injured policemen have been taken by air to Srinagar's main army hospital, with the condition of four said to be serious.

First attack

Militant groups in Kashmir have generally been maintaining a low profile since Tuesday's terror attacks in the United States.

We have ordered our soldiers to be extra vigilant to prevent infiltration

Indian army spokesman

The attack spread panic in Handwara township, which lies in Kupwara district, bordering Pakistan-administered Kashmir.

Senior police officers have rushed to Handwara to assess the situation and coordinate a search. Indian army and paramilitary forces have sealed off the area.

In a separate incident, at least three separatist militants are reported to have been shot dead in the southern part of Indian-administered Kashmir.

Indian troops have also stepped up their vigil along the border with Pakistan and along the line of control, which separates their forces in Kashmir.

"We have ordered our soldiers to be extra vigilant to prevent infiltration because there reports that Pakistan had shut down training camps," an Indian Army spokesman told the Reuters news agency.