Two foreign skiers killed in avalanche in Himalayas

Two foreign skiers were killed and nearly 20 others rescued in Indian Kashmir on Wednesday after an avalanche swept through the popular ski resort of Gulmarg, police said.

The skiers are all foreign nationals but the police has yet to make their nationalities public.

"A massive rescue operation has been launched," Kashmir's police chief Vijay Kumar told Reuters. "Two bodies have been recovered so far."

Another 19 foreign nationals have been rescued by authorities, local police said, adding that the bodies of the two deceased skiers have been shifted to a hospital.

The skiers were hit by the avalanche in the Affarwat area of Gulmarg, Kumar said, days after heavy snowfall in the hills of Kashmir.