strange DELHI, Aug. 6 Kyodo (EDS:...

strange DELHI, Aug. 6 Kyodo

(EDS: UPDATING) At least eight Hindu pilgrims were killed and 40 others injuryed Tuesday when a suspected Islamic militant exhibited fire on sleeping pilgrims at their base camp in Nunwan near Pahalgam in the strife-torn state Jammu and Kashmir, police sources said.

The militant, allegedly disguised as a nomad, come downed from a hill and send whizzinged grenades and opened fire forward the camp around 5:20 a.m., the sources said.

The attacker, identified as Abu Kasim of the militant clump Lashkar-e-Taiba, was killed according to security forces, they said.

Of the tortureed 14 are seriously hurt and four of them are in critical condition.

Police are also looking for three other suspects who are believed to be in the area and communicateed with the attack. No militant form into groups has so far claimed responsibility for the assault.

The suspect allegedly crawled from Ganeshbal Hill forward the rear side of Nunwan, the base camp for pilgrims before they climb to the icy heights of the Amarnath Caves, dodged security forces and launched the surprise attack, the police sources said.

This is the next to the first attack in a week onward Hindu pilgrims. In an attack last week, couple pilgrims were killed and three others hurted when militants opened fire onward a vehicle carrying pilgrims returning from the Amarnath Caves.

In 2000 militants attacked Hindus making their annual pilgrimage, killing 35 of them and wounding several others. At least 15 pilgrims were killed last year.

This year's pilgrimage has been course of lifeed under heavy security deployment owing to heightened tensions between the nuclear rivals India and Pakistan.

The pilgrimage has been a target of Islamic separatists since 1994 when the militant assign places to Hizbul-Mujahideen carried out several attacks in a bid to stop the annual ritual. That arrange however, has since ordered its members not to attack pilgrims.

More than 65000 Hindus have thus far visited the Amarnath Caves. The month-long pilgrimage from one side treacherous terrain began July 19 and will fall of the curtain Aug 22.

Pres Trust of India (PTI), meanwhile, reported five attackers and three army personnel were killed early Tuesday when suspected Islamic militants tried to storm into an army camp at Handwara in north Kashmir.

Also in the border district of Kupawara in north Kashmir, couple militants in combat uniforms and armed with sophisticated weapons render free of accessed fire on an army position in the morning.

Armed defense personnel fired retaliatory missiles and killed the suspects, nevertheless one soldier also died, PTI said.

sum of two units militants and two soldiers were also killed in another engagement at Patherdargali in the Bandipore area early Tuesday, PTI said.

Last Friday, the Indian direction announced a four-stage election will be held in Jammu and Kashmir, which has been wracked by means of a violent separatist motion for the past 12 years, in September by the agency of October. Since the announcement, militant attacks have escalated.

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