10 of 13 militants killed in OFFENSIVE FROM SHOPIAN
SHOPIAN: Ten of the 13 militants killed over the weekend in a major offensive by the state police were from Shopian, an indication that security personnel have tightened their hold on the south Kashmir terror bastion over the last five months, officials said.
Most of the 10 from Shopian, once considered the ground zero of terrorism, were young and had joined the militant movement between last year and now. Sources in the security establishment expressed the hope that parents of disappeared youth would now encourage their children to shun violence and surrender.
The oldest of the 10 was Ishfaq Ahmad Thoker, alias 'Abrar', who became a militant in September 2015, officials said.
The others, from various villages in the district, were Ubaid Shafi Malla alias 'Abu Huraira', who became a militant in February 2017, Zubair Ahmed Turrey alias 'Abu Bakar', Nazim Ahmad Dar alias 'Furqan Bhai' and Rayees Ahmad Thoker (May 2017), Yawar Itoo (July 2017), Adil Ahmed Thoker (November 2017), Ishfaq Ahmed Malik alias 'Umar Bhai' (January 2018), Aetimad Hussain Malik (November 2017) and Sameer Ahmed Lone (February 2018).
Director General of Police SP Vaid made a passionate appeal, asking youth to shun violence.
"It is painful to all of us to see the loss of young lives. My appeal again to the parents of the boys, who have taken the wrong path... they should convince their wards to leave the path of violence and come home," he said on Sunday.
Considered a gateway to the Kashmir Valley for being strategically located on the way to the historical Mughal road, Shopian had nearly 30 active militants, including Saddam Paddar and Zeenat-ul-islam who are rated A++ category militants and carry a cash reward on them. Both are still at large.
The area, south of the Peer Panjal mountain range, can provide free access to terrorists to cross over to Doda, Kishtawar and Poonch area of Jammu, the officials said.
"My appeal to the young people of Kashmir would be not to be carried away by Pakistan or their proxies and be led into the path of violence," said Lt Gen A K Bhatt, corps commander of the Srinagar-based XV corps.
"We will carry out operations as we have carried against anybody who will use his weapon," Bhatt had said on Sunday.
More than 50 youths from the area "disappeared", a euphemism for joining various militant groups, after the killing of Burhan Wani, the poster boy of Hizbul Mujahideen, on July 8, 2016.
The police, CRPG and the Army increased their footprint over Shopian, where militants roamed freely, last year.
The forceful resistance to security forces to enter into Heff Shermaal area in the district in April last year was an eye-opener, officials said. Security forces were compelled to withdraw, pushing senior officials to the drawing board to draft a new strategy to make Shopian a militant free zone.
Victor Force, a counterinsurgency unit of the Army headed by Major Gen BS Raju, Inspector General of Police (Kashmir range) SP Pani, along with senior CRPF officers brain-stormed and re-calibrated their plans to control Shopian, it is learnt. NEW DELHI: The Centre today extended the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act in three districts of Arunachal Pradesh and eight police station areas bordering Assam by another six months.
According to a notification issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs, Tirap, Changlang and Longding districts of Arunachal Pradesh and eight police stations bordering Assam were declared "disturbed" areas under the AFSPA, 1958.
The Act gives special rights and immunity to security forces in carrying out various operations in "disturbed" areas. It gives security personnel the power to search premises and arrest without warrant, to use force even to the extent of causing death.
"And whereas a further review of the law and order situation in Tirap, Changlang and Longding districts of Arunachal Pradesh and in the area falling within the jurisdiction of eleven police stations in districts of Arunachal Pradesh, bordering the state of Assam, has been undertaken.
"Now, therefore, Tirap, Changlang and Longding districts in Arunachal Pradesh and the areas falling within the jurisdiction of the following eight police stations in the districts of Arunachal Pradesh, bordering the state of Assam, are declared as disturbed area' under Section 3 of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958 up to September 30, 2018 w.e.f. April 1, 2018, unless withdrawn earlier," the notification said. JAMMU: The Jammu & Kashmir National Panthers Party (JKNPP) workers today staged a protest here, demanding a CBI probe into the rape-andmurder case of an eight-yearold girl in January.
Led by JKNPP chairman Harsh Dev Singh, activists of the party today assembled in front of the CBI office here and said that only the premier investigate agency of India could ensure justice in the case.
The protesters raised slogans against the governments, both state and central, and later submitted a memorandum addressed to Director CBI through the regional CBI SP Jai Parkash Mishra.
Mishra assured the delegation that their memorandum would be sent to the CBI director as well as the DG of J&K Police.
"The CBI would have no problem in investigating the matter in case it was handed over to it by the competent authority," said Mishra. The protesters demanded impartial and fair investigation into the murder case "so that the actual perpetrators of heinous crime are booked under the law".