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Hindu villagers killed in Kashmir
SRINAGAR, Indian-controlled Kashmir (CNN) -- Twenty four members of the Hindu community have been shot dead by suspected Islamic militants in a town south of Srinagar, senior police officials have told CNN. The shooting occurred late Sunday around 10:30 p.m. local time when militants entered the village, disarmed a police guard, and killed several residents, authorities said. It was unclear how many of the dead were women and children. People were reportedly taken from their homes and shot. Nadimarg is largely a Muslim area about 55 kilometers (35 miles) south of Srinagar, the capital on the Indian side of Kashmir. Hindus form part of the minority there. The shootings come soon after a prominent Muslim separatist was murdered earlier Sunday near the town of Sopore, just north of Srinagar, by masked gunmen who shot up his car. Abdul Majib Dar, the former chief commander and founder of Kashmir's biggest guerrilla group, Hizbul Mujahideen, died shortly after being taken to a nearby hospital, authorities said. No one claimed responsibility for the Sopore attack, but police believe a rival group, possibly even a faction within the Hizbul Mujahideen, carried out the ambush. India's northern state of Jammu and Kashmir, of which Srinagar is the summer capital, was also subjected to heavy shelling over the weekend. (Full story) Kashmir has been at the center of tensions between India and Pakistan for more than five decades. The two nuclear-armed rivals have fought two of their three wars over the territory, and came close to fighting another last year. India accuses Pakistan of providing funding and other support to militants carrying out terrorist attacks on Indian territory. Pakistan denies the accusation, saying it only gives moral support to the Kashmiri people's right to self-determination.
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