3 MILITANTS KILLED IN KASHMIR

Police confirm girl aged between 7 and 10 years was hit by a stray bullet when she was sitting at home, another injured minor said to be stable

A week after a 15-yearold boy was killed during an encounter, another minor girl fell prey to a stray bullet in north Kashmir on Wednesday.

A police press release identified the girl as Kaneeza, though the authorities could not confirm her age.

However, independent reports suggested she was aged between seven and 10 years.

“A minor girl named Kaneeza and a minor boy Faisal were injured after they were hit by stray bullets more than 100 metres away from the encounter site. They were shifted to hospital for treatment where the girl succumbed to her injuries. The boy has been referred to Srinagar and his condition is stable so far,” the police spokesperson said.

While the army was tightlipped about the minor girl’s death, DGP SP Vaid said the bullet “hit her inside her home”.

“It’s an unfortunate incident. The girl was sitting inside her house when a stray bullet hit her,” Vaid said.

Three militants were also killed while a policeman named Danish Ahmad was injured in the encounter that started early morning in Kalaroos village after forces received specific information about presence of militants in the area.

According to an army spokesman, the identity of the militants is yet to be ascertained. Three weapons were recovered from the encounter site.

A 15-year-old civilian, Amir Nazir, was killed on Thursday in an encounter between security forces and militants in Padgampora of Pulwama district in south Kashmir.

He received a bullet injury to his neck.

ACCORDING TO AN ARMY SPOKESPERSON, THE IDENTITY OF THE MILITANTS IS YET TO BE ASCERTAINED. THREE WEAPONS WERE ALSO RECOVERED FROM THE ENCOUNTER SITE