Security forces continued to maintain pressure on hibernating militants in Kashmir as specific intelligence input led to the killing of two Pakistani militants in a village near Sopore town of north Kashmir on Sunday. Five militants of Jaish-e-Muhammad outfit were killed in a similar operation in south Kashmir’s Shopian district last week.
Kashmir insurgency experts say that militants prefer to remain confined to their hideouts during winter months. The effective intelligence network of the security forces occasionally tracks them down. Most of the militants of foreign origin prefer to cross over the line of Control (loC) but a sizeable number mingles into the local population. The hideouts in deep forests are abandoned due to heavy snowfall and sub-zero temperatures.
Official sources said that a joint team of police and counterinsurgency Rashtriya Rifles troops cordoned off Saidpura village near Sopore on Saturday evening following a “specific input” on presence of two militants there. “The operation was launched at 9.30 pm and an effective cordon was established past midnight by blocking all possible escape routes,” a Defence spokesman said adding militants attempted to escape the cordoned area but were engaged precisely before being shot dead.
“Search of the area led to the recovery of bodies of two terrorists, 2 AK-47 rifles, one Pistol, ammunition and two uni-barrel grenade launchers with six rounds. Police identified the slain militants as Assadullah and Mohammad Ramzan, both Pakistani nationals affiliated with lashkar-e-Tayyeba (leT) outfit. “Assadullah infiltrated last year and was a Group Commander of leT. He was instrumental to rope in cadres of Jaish-e-Muhammad into his group. He was active in Kupwara district earlier and had moved to Sopore area last month and was planning to reactivate leT base in Sopore", police said in a statement.
Ramzan was earlier affiliated with Jaish and was a part of the 20-strong JeM group in north Kashmir which had infiltrated in 2013. A large part of that group migrated to South Kashmir and many were killed. He was one of the two remaining JeM militants of that group in North Kashmir who had now got inducted into leT, police claimed.
"This is the fifth successful operation of 2015. So far a total of eight terrorists have been eliminated and two terrorists apprehended", defence spokesman said. last week, security forces tracked down a major group of Jaish militants hiding in an abandoned hut in forested area of Keller in south Kashmir's Shopian district.