Top leT militant killed in encounter
Soon after the encounter, hundreds of local residents staged protests to claim the body of the slain militant. The police resorted to firing to disperse the protesters, resulting in the death of a youngster and injuries to three others.
Defence sources said that security forces had input about presence of militants at the residential house of a Hurriyat worker in Krankshivan pocket of Sopore. The house was zeroed in on by a joint party of army, police and paramilitaries but the militants left the hideout and took positions in a nearby saw-mill.
The militants were asked to surrender their arms, but they refused to do so. Police said that mother of holed up militant Javid Ahmad Matoo was called in to plead for surrender, but her shouts were not entertained.
The security forces raided the house later until firing stopped from the hideout. Police said they have recovered body of a foreign militant from the encounter site leading to suspicion that his companion has broken the cordon to flee safely.
The slain militant has been identified as Mehmood Bhai alias Huraira of Pakistan.
Police said Hurrairah was active in north Kashmir and had escaped unhurt in various encounters with the security forces. An AK-47 rifle and a magazine have been recovered from the encounter site.
Soon after the operation was called off, people in large numbers assembled around the encounter site and amid pro-freedom slogans resorted to heavy stone-pelting. Protestors were demanding that the body of militant should be handed over to them for last rites.
“Operation parties while withdrawing from the area were pelted with stones by some miscreants. The mob swelled and attempted to set at fire one security armoured vehicle. Security forces used non-lethal weapons, but the situation could not be controlled. Resultantly, few shots were fired in which four people got injured,” a police spokesman explained.
He said one of the wounded Arshad Ahmad Shah succumbed to his injuries. The killing of youth sparked more protests in the area with more and more people joining protesters, witnesses said.
The lashkar commander was killed four days after three Hizbul Mujahideen militants including its ‘Divisional Commander’ for south Kashmir were shot dead in Buchoo village of Tral in Pulwama district.
Meanwhile, normal life remained crippled in Kashmir following a shutdown call by JKlF to protest against the “attempts of Government of India to change the demography of Muslim majority State”.
JKlF chief Yasin Malik was taken into custody when he attempted to march towards lal Chowk. Malik had gone into hiding for several days.