SRINAGA R: India`s army said on Saturday that two militant s and two soldier s were kille d in an overnight gunbattle close to the Line of Control, as a curfew continued to be enforced in parts of India-held Kashmir.

The gunbattle erupted on Friday night in Nowgam sector after Indian soldiers spotted the militants who had entered the area af ter crossing the LoC, Col Nitin N. Joshi, an army spokesman, claimed.

In addition to the four fatalities, an Indian soldier was wounded in the fighting, he said, adding that Indian forces had recovered two assault rifles and some ammunition from the militants.

Meanwhile, a curfew was still in effect in parts of Indiaheld Kashmir, with shops closed across the disputed regionin response to a call for a shutdown until Sunday.

Curfew-bound areas included the downtown portion of Srinagar and the southern towns of Anantnag and Pampore.

In non-curfew areas, authorities banned the assembly of more than four people to prevent protests.

Doctors and police said more than 100 protesters were injured in clashes with security forces at 70 places across the region on Friday. Angry demonstrators threw stones at the forces, injuring at least 30, a police of ficer said.

Troubled areas of southern Kashmir have mostly remained under curfew since July 9, the day after a militant leader, Burhan Wani, was killed by the Indian forces.

At least 49 civilians have been killed in clashes between protesters and security forces since then.-AP