SRINAGAR: Militants attacked a police station and killed a constable in south Kashmir's Shopian district on Sunday.
Constable Saqib Mir, who was guarding the main gate of the police station, was critically injured as the militants fired from their AK-47 rifles. The militants snatched his service rifle and fled from the spot, the police said.
Mir was evacuated to a nearby hospital, where he succumbed to injuries.
After the militant attack, the police, the CRPF and the Army laid siege around the area and launched a combing and search operation to track down the attackers. However, no arrest was reported during the over one hour operation.
Mir is the eight policemen to have died in militant attacks in Shopian district in last two months. The Sunday's attack comes after the abduction-cum-killing of three policemen by militants in the same district on September 21.
Shopian has emerged as a stronghold of militants owing allegiance to Hizbul Mujahideen, Lashkar-e-Toiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad. Although the CRPF and the Army have set up
additional camps in the district to prevent movement of militants, the ultras have managed to strike on their will and frequently target policemen and security force vehicles.