2 JEM militants killed in Pulwama encounter

SRINAGAR: Two local Jaishe-mohammed (JEM) militants were killed in an encounter with security forces on Tuesday in Tral area of Pulwama district in Jammu and Kashmir, police said here.

Giving details, police said that based on a specific intelligence a joint team of police, army and CRPF cordoned off Pamposh colony in Saimoh of Tral, a division under the jurisdiction of Awantipora police.

As the cordon was being laid, there was an initial exchange of fire at the crack of dawn between the holedup terrorists and the security forces and one of them was eliminated, police said.

The other militant was seen running into residential houses, prompting the security forces to launch a cordon and search operation and all the civilians were evacuated.

However, the searches yielded no results, police said.

The determined security forces then continued their hot pursuit for the escaped terrorist but had to face resistance from a small mob of about 40 people who gathered at the encounter site and started pelting them with stones. But the security forces took effective control of the area as the mob dispersed when they fired tear gas shells and used can-charging.

The forces then continued searching for the escaped terrorist, who was finally found hiding near a water conduit.

After a brief exchange of fire, the second militant was also killed by the security forces, a police spokesperson said.

Incriminating materials, arms and ammunition including two AK rifles, two pistols, 5 AK magazines and two hand grenades were recovered from them, the spokesman said.