Three militants killed in Jammu and Kashmir
Srinagar, India - A commander of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terror outfit and two of its militants were killed by the Indian forces in an 18 hour long gunbattle that ended on Sunday on the outskirts of Srinagar, the Jammu and Kashmir capital, police said.
The police identified the two militants as Mudasir Parray and Saquib Mushtaq, both hailing from Hajin area of north Kashmir’s Bandipore district.
The third militant was identified as Ali Bhai, who is a resident of Pakistan, the Indo-Asian News Service (IANS) reported.
“All the militants belonged to the LeT militant outfit,” a police officer said.
A soldier, a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) trooper and three policemen were injured on Saturday, hours after the encounter broke out in the evening in the Mujgund area following a tip off about militants’ presence.
The operation stretched for hours as militants kept on changing locations during the gunfight within the cordoned off area, a police officer explained.
Four houses were also damaged during the operation.
Civilian protesters clashed with the security forces the moment the gunbattle ended on Sunday forcing authorities to suspend mobile Internet services in Srinagar district.
In another incident, a Hizbul militant’s close associate, who has been motivating youths to join militant ranks, was arrested in the state’s Kishtwar district, police said on Sunday.
The arrested militant was identified as Riyaz Ahmad, who has been an associate with Hizbul terrorist Muhammad Amin, an officer said.
More arrests were likely based on leads that would come out after interrogation of the nabbed militant, who hails from Dachan village, an official said.