Two militants of lashkar-e-Tayyeba were killed in a 20-hour long gun battle on the outskirts of Srinagar city on Monday, a day after two policemen and two militants died in two interlinked encounters in south Kashmir. The encounters took place when election canvassing is gaining momentum for the three parliamentary constituencies in Kashmir valley.
Police said that the slain militants were foreigners and have been active in Tral pocket of south Kashmir for the past three years. Two policemen have been wounded in the gun fight but three persons holed up in the residential house were evacuated before it engulfed into flames.The slain militants have been identified as Abu Huzaifa and Chota Hafiz, both Pakistani nationals. The encounter triggered off late on Sunday evening following a tip-off to police that militants were hiding in Ahmad Nagar pocket of Srinagar. The area was cordoned off and exchange of fire began when security forces specifically encircled the hideout.
Sources said that one militant was killed on Sunday evening while a soldier sustained bullet injury in the initial bout of fire. The operation was halted during the night and began at the crack of dawn on Monday. It ended in the afternoon when the second militant was also killed. Police said that house-owner and his daughter and wife were given free passage.