Security tightened in Kashmir's Poonch District following militant attack

Security has been tightened in the border areas of Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch District after Thursday's twin terror strike on a police camp and an army catonment in the region's Kathua and Samba Districts.

In all 12 people, including the three militants, were killed.

Just a day before the twin strike, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said he would meet his Pakistan counterpart Nawaz Sharif on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly over the weekend.

The leaders of the nuclear-armed neighbours are expected to discuss rising violence in Kashmir. Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said the assault was an attempt to derail the talks.

Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Poonch, Shamsher Hussain, said the security system was in place and the army along the border was also on high alert.

"The security system is in place since the attempts of infiltration began. The army on the Line of Control (LoC) is also on high alert and they are working in close coordination with us. We regularly interact with them and we are working jointly," said Hussain.

The security vehicles and the policemen patrolled the streets with an aim to ensure peace after the militant attack.

A group of three gunmen attacked a police station in the morning, about 10 km (6 miles) from the border with Pakistan, killing five policemen. They then hijacked a truck and raided an army camp, security forces said. One civilian was killed.

The militants killed three soldiers during hours of fighting at the camp, near the town of Samba.

India and Pakistan have fought two of their three wars since independence in 1947 over Muslim-majority Kashmir, which they both claim in full but rule in part.

India has accused Pakistan of supporting militants fighting security forces in Indian Kashmir since 1989.

Militant strikes in Kashmir, as well as shooting and mortar fire between Indian and Pakistani forces across the border, have risen this year after a decade of falling violence.

While Prime Minister Singh strongly condemned what he called a "heinous terrorist attack" he suggested the meeting With Sharif, expected on Sunday, would go ahead.

Pakistan denies arming or training militants, but says it offers moral support to the Muslim people of Kashmir who it says face rights abuses by Indian forces.

According to the South Asia Terrorism Portal, which tracks violence in Kashmir, 128 people, including 44 security personnel, have been killed in the region this year, before the latest attack. That compares with 117 people killed in 2012.