SRI NAGAR: Four militants, including a top Lashkar-e-Taiba commander and a Pakistani national, were killed in two separate gunfights in Kashmir, while the Army foiled a weapon smuggling attempt from across the Line of Control (LoC) in Keran sector of Kupwara district on Saturday.
A police official said a contingent of the J&K Police, the CRPF and the Army launched a joint search operation at Chinigam area of south Kashmir’s Kulgam district after receiving inputs about the militants’ presence.
He said two Jaish-e-Mohammad militants — a Pakistani national Sameer Bhai alias Usman and a local, Tariq Ahmad Mir — were killed in the gunfight. Both the militants, according to the police, were involved in attacks on police and security forces.
A few hours later, another gunfight broke out between militants and security forces at Dadoora in Kangan area of Pulwama district.
In the hour-long encounter, two local militants, including a top Lashkar commander Zahid Nazir Bhat alias Zahid Tiger, were killed. Bodies of all the four militants buried quietly by the police in a north Kashmir graveyard. After the Covid-19 outbreak, the police are not handing the bodies of local militants to their families.
Meanwhile, a defence spokesperson said Army personnel deployed along the LoC noticed a group of 2-3 people transporting some items in a tube tied to a rope across the Kishenganga river in Keran sector.The troops, he said, immediately rushed to the area and launched a search operation.
“During the searches, four AK-74 rifles, eight magazines and 240 rounds were recovered from the site,” he said.
General Officer Commanding of Srinagar-based Army’s 15 Corps Lt Gen Gen B S Raju said the incident shows there was no change in Pakistan’s intentions and policy. “We are ready to foil all their nefarious designs in future,” he said.
Infiltration in Kashmir