Deadly raid mars S. Asian efforts

Indian security forces inspect the bodies of separatist militants after the raid

KALUCHAK, India (CNN) -- Suspected Islamic militants opened fire on an army camp in Indian Kashmir, killing at least 30 people and wounding 40, marring a new effort to ease the tension between nuclear foes India and Pakistan.

The raid at Kaluchak, in the disputed Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir, is one of the most deadly attacks in the long-running Kashmir conflict and the worst violence in the region in over six months.

A previously unknown rebel group -- al-Mansoorain -- claimed responsibility for the attack, although it is not known how credible the claim is. Local news agency NAFA told CNN's New Delhi Bureau chief Satinder Bindra that the claim was phoned in to their office.

The surprise attack came as U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for South Asian Affairs Christina Rocca, was visiting New Delhi. She immediately slammed the raid.

CNN NewsPass VIDEO At least 30 people were killed and another 40 wounded in an attack on an Indian army camp in Kashmir. CNN's Satinder Bindra reports. Play video   IN-DEPTH KASHMIR: Where conflict rules     CNN.com Asia More news from our Asia edition

"I would like, on behalf of my government, to condemn the attack on Jammu this morning," Rocca said.

"This is just the type of barbarism that the war on terrorism is determined to stop. I express my sympathies to the families of the victims."

Rocca is visiting the region to meet with top Indian officials in a trip aimed at ending a six-month military standoff between South Asian rivals India and Pakistan.

Firing from a bus

The Kaluchak attack began when the suspected militants fired on Indian security forces from a bus. In the crossfire, seven people on board the bus were killed.

Kaluchak is located about six miles (0 kilometers) south of Jammu.

Later, the men entered the residential quarters of the army camp and shot dead three soldiers, four of their wives and three children, police sources said.

It was the bloodiest attack in Kashmir since 38 people were killed in a suicide raid on the state assembly in October.

More than a dozen Islamic groups have been fighting for Kashmir's independence from India since the militant insurgency began in 1989.

India and Pakistan, which have fought two of their three wars over Kashmir, have been locked in a tense standoff since a December 13 raid on India's parliament that New Delhi has blamed on Pakistani-based Kashmiri rebels.

Standoff

India and Pakistan are embroiled in a standoff

Pakistani military leader Pervez Musharraf banned several militant groups after the attack on the Indian parliament, including the two blamed by India for the raid.

But more than a million men have massed along the border from both sides, backed by warplanes, tanks and missile batteries.

India accuses Islamabad of arming and training Pakistan-based militant groups but Pakistan denies the charges, instead saying it only provides moral and diplomatic support for Kashmiri separatists.

Authorities say that around 30,000 people have been killed during the campaign in the Muslim majority state, but human rights groups put the death toll at twice that number.

For weeks, analysts and diplomats have been warning of a rise in tension as the snow melts in the Himalayan mountain passes, making it easier for militants to cross into Indian Kashmir.

Indian analysts have said the raid would increase pressure on the Indian government to act against Pakistan-based Muslim rebels, but said they did not expect an immediate military response.

India controls about 45 percent of Muslim-majority Kashmir, Pakistan a third and China the rest.