SRINAGAR: At least 39 policemen have been killed so far in the Kashmir Valley; a number that has already surpassed the number killed last year, sources in the Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) police said on Sunday.
On Friday evening, a group of militants barged into the residence of policeman Javed Ahmad Lone in Sopore, North Kashmir and shot him at point-blank range, while his wife and children were present in the house. 37-year-old Lone succumbed to his injuries in a nearby hospital. He was on leave at the time of the attack.
On September 21, militants abducted and killed three policemen including two Special Police Officers (SPOs) in the militancy-riddled Shopian district of south Kashmir.
The sources mentioned above said, of those killed, 30 were policemen while nine were Special Police Officers (SPOs).
So far, about a dozen policemen have been killed while they were on leave in south Kashmir, they added. In a major attack, militants ambushed a police vehicle at Arhama village of Shopian district on August 29, killing four policemen and looting their weapons.
On January 6, militants set off an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) in Sopore town of north Kashmir's Baramulla. The blast, which was claimed by Pakistan based militant outfit Jaish-e-Mohammad, claimed the lives of four policemen including an Assistant Sub Inspector.
In 2018, 33 policemen were killed in militant attacks across the troubled Valley.
A senior police official said militants are trying to intimidate the police by targeting them.
He said the police were the target because over the past two years, militant numbers had taken a hit due to successful operations by the state police.
“By targeting policemen, the militants try to create fear among the local police and demoralise them to disrupt anti-militancy operations,” the official said.
The attacks however, are not impacting the morale of the ranks, he said.
“The operations against militants will continue without any relent,” the official added.
The J&K police has advised its men hailing from south Kashmir not to visit their homes barring an emergency and even then, only after having informed the local police unit.