"There is no question of retreat... If we don't fight now, Indians will press forward in our area," said Mohammed Shoaib, a militant fresh from fighting in the mountains.

A member of the Al-Badr fighting group, one of four militant organisations fighting in the sector, Shoaib said conditions in the conflict zone were horrific.

"The weather is our greatest enemy," he said. "The faces of many of the militants have been burned by the snow... One can even see their nose bones... Still, none of them wants to stop fighting."

The militants cross into Indian territory via Pakistan, said Shoaib.

"We travel in groups of 40 to 50 while crossing the border. And it takes four to five days to reach to the frontline," he said.

Other militant groups said they were "greatly pained and hurt" by Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's agreement withClinton.

Fazl-ur Rehman Khalil, chief of the Harakat-ul Mujahedeen, formerly known as Harakat-ul Ansar, vowed to continue fighting and said rebels were not party to the agreement. "We were not expecting this type of decision from the Government... We are greatly pained and hurt," he said, adding, "We will not come back under any circumstances. We went there to move forward, not to retreat."

AFP adds: In Pakistan-occupied Kashmir's capital Muzaffarabad, militant groups said fighting in Kargil would go on despite Pakistan's commitment to withdraw.

"We will not stop their struggle," Syed Salahuddin, commander of the Hizbul Mujahideen, told AFP in an interview.

"It does not matter for us what commitment Nawaz Sharif has made in the US. We started our struggle on our own and will continue fighting," Salahuddin said.

Sharif and United States President Bill Clinton agreed in talks in Washington on Sunday on "concrete steps" for the restoration of the Line of Control (LoC).

"The mujahideen are notbound by any agreement," Salahuddin said, adding, "We condemn and reject attempts of the White House to sabotage our movement."

Successive governments in Pakistan had "blundered" at crucial junctures when the struggle was near victory, he claimed.

"When the mujahideen are today in a dominating position in the Kargil-Drass mountains, it is unwise to take any step that could bail them out," he said.

"If Nawaz Sharif has made any commitment, he has not done well. It is not only bad for his career but is tantamount to rubbing salt on the wounds of the militants," he said.