Officials with India's security forces say they killed five suspected militants during a gunbattle in the disputed region of Kashmir.

Security officials said the battle took place Monday nearly 50 kilometers from Srinagar, the main city in the Indian-controlled portion of the Himalayan region.

Several rebel groups have been fighting Indian rule the past few decades, but no one commented on the army's report.

Kashmir is divided between India and Pakistan, who both claim it in its entirety. Rights groups estimate that at least 70,000 people have been killed in the fighting since 1990.