Hizb commander Riyaz Naikoo says outfit’s men were forced to kill Kashmiris to free their ‘Pakistani brother’

SRINAGAR: Kashmir’s home-grown militant outfit Hizbul Mujahideen has claimed responsibility for Tuesday’s attack on a Srinagar hospital during which gunmen shot dead two policemen and freed a Pakistani Lashkar-etaiba terrorist brought for treatment in custody.

In a nearly eight-minute audio released on Wednesday, Kashmir’s Hizb commander Riyaz Naikoo claimed it was his men who raided the Shri Maharaja Hari Singh Hospital to free Lashkar terrorist Naveed Jhatt. Naikoo said Jhatt had “reached south Kashmir” safely.

On the killing of the two policemen guarding Jhatt, Naikoo said, “They were forced to kill Kashmiris to free their Pakistani brother.”

Naikoo, who took over as Hizb commander after Yasin Itoo’s death, added, “When we saw the children of the two policemen, we were heartbroken because we don’t want to kill any Kashmiri, but people who are aligning with India are forcing us to kill them.”

The Hizb message pointing to collaboration between militant groups did not surprise the security establishment.

Jammu and Kashmir director general of police SP Vaid said such coordination was seen in many other attacks.

“All the militants groups are now working together. It’s not just this incident. Lately, we have been seeing many joint attacks by various groups,” he added.

A senior police officer who did not want to be named said, “Lashkar-e-taiba cannot survive in south Kashmir (the hotbed of militancy in the Valley) without Hizbul Mujahideen support. The various outfits are working together and are different just in name.”

The Hizb is primarily an indigenous group, while the Lashkar comprises Pakistani nationals who infiltrate into India.

The Hizb mostly trains cadre in forests across Kashmir, while Lashkar terrorists get commando training across the border.