Jehangeer Ganai
Srinagar, Dec 30: Six Jaish-e-Muhammad militants including two foreigners and a soldier were killed in two separate encounters in southern districts of Anantnag and Kulgam conducted by security agencies in the past 24-hours, police said Thursday. Two soldiers and a policeman were also injured in one of the encounters.
A police official said that during the past 24-hrs, two anti-militancy operations were carried out in twin districts of South Kashmir resulting in elimination of six militants of JeM.
“The slain militants include two foreigners who were involved in the attack on police bus at Zewan killing three policemen and injuring 11 years,” the official said. He said that the first encounter took place in Nowgam,Dooru area of Anantnag, where a joint cordon and search operation was launched by Police, 19RR and 164Bn CRPF on Wednesday late evening.
“During the search operation, as the presence of militants got ascertained, they fired indiscriminately upon the joint search party which was retaliated leading to an encounter,” the official said, adding that “In the initial exchange of fire, four security forces personnel including a policeman received gunshot injuries. They were evacuated to hospital for treatment of their injuries however, one soldier succumbed.”
Briefing the media persons at Wuzur,Qazigund army camp, the IGP Kashmir said that in the encounter, three militants of JeM were killed. “They were identified as Sultan alias Rayees alias Mavia (a foreigner), Nisar Ahmad Khanday, a resident of Dudwangan, Kapran and Altaf Ahmad Shah, a resident of Nathipora, Dooru,” the IGP said.
He said that slain militant Altaf and foreign militant Sultan alias Rayees alias Mavia along with another militant Suhail Rather were involved in the Zewan, Srinagar attack in which three policemen were killed and 11 others injured.
The IGP Kashmir said another operation was launched in Mirhama, Kulgam. “A joint cordon was laid by police, army’s 9RR and 18 battalion CRPF in the area,” he said.
“During the search operation, as the presence of militants got ascertained, they fired indiscriminately upon the joint search party which was retaliated leading to an encounter. In the ensuing encounter, three militants JeM were killed and their bodies were retrieved from the site of encounter,” the IGP said, adding that the slain were identified as Shahid alias Shahzaid resident of Pakistan (a foreign militant), Muhammad Shafi Dar resident of Tral and Uzair Ahmad, a resident of Mirhama.
The IGP said that slain militant Shahid was listed among the top most wanted militants operating in J&K while as the other two killed militants were also categorized ones linked with JeM.
He said that huge cache of arms and ammunition including 02 M-4 rifles, 04 AK-47 rifles were also recovered from the sites of encounters. Speaking on the occasion, General officer Commanding (GoC) of Srinagar-based army’s 15 Corps Lieutenant General D P Pandey while replying to a query that of late, foreign militants are also getting killed, said that it was because they are coming out of their hide-outs to carry out operations as locals militants are refusing to attack forces due to their own challenges. “As the foreigners would come out of their hide-outs, they will be killed,” he said in the past five days, 11 militants were killed and in past 24 hours, six militants were killed.
