Fayaz Bukhari
SRINAGAR, Apr 24: Four militants including top commander of Jaish-e-Mohammad and two security force personnel were killed in an encounter at Tral forest area of South Kashmir’s Pulwama district today.
Security forces intercepted a militant group at Goiytengo forests in Tral who earlier fled after a brief exchange of gunfire. Two Army personnel and one SOG cop identified as Latif Gojri were injured. The critically injured Latif later succumbed. An injured soldier Ajay Kumar of 42 RR succumbed to injuries at 92 Base Hospital here in Srinagar. He was injured during the initial firing by militants on Army and was removed to the Base hospital in a chopper.
Four militants were killed in the operation at Goiytengo forests in Laam area. All the bodies of the militants were recovered along with four AK-rifles. One of the militant has been identified as top JeM commander, Umar Khalid while two others are local and have been identified as Ishfaq Ahmad and Abid of Lashkar-e-Toiba. The fourth militant who is a foreigner is yet to be identified.
Sources said that two among the slain militants are foreigners and belonged to the Jaish-e-Mohammad militant outfit. The searches of the forest area were going on till late in the evening.
The wreath laying ceremony of the policeman Latif Gojri was held at DPL Awantipora where among others IGP Kashmir Swayam Prakash Pani, DIG SKR Amit Kumar and other security force officials were present.
The encounter broke out in the area after Army’s 42 RR, SOG and CRPF launched a cordon-and-search operation in the forest area following inputs about presence of militants in the area.
A police spokesman said here that Awantipora police along with 42 RR and 180 battalion of CRPF carried out searches in the Gatengo Laam forest area of Tral today.
“After receiving credible inputs about the presence of militants in the area, searches were initiated and during searches, the holed up militants fired heavily upon the search party. Security forces in their guarded response fired back leading to an encounter with the militants. During the encounter, three militants of outlawed JeM were neutralized. Their identity is being ascertained. Moreover, one police personnel identified as Mohammad Latif son of Ghulam Hassan resident of Tral and one Army Jawan identified as Ajay Kumar attained martyrdom in the encounter”, the spokesman said.
“During the encounter, incriminating materials including arms and ammunition were recovered from the spot. The search in the area is going on”, the spokesman added.
In the meantime, a policeman has gone missing along with a service rifle from police post-Pakherpora in Central Kashmir’s Budgam district this evening.
Jammu and Kashmir police constable who was posted as a constable in Police Post Pakherpora has been missing along with AK-47 rifle.
A police officer said that constable Tariq Bhat (belt number 1151) son of Mohammad Abdullah Bhat of Qazipora Shopian had gone missing from the police post soon after he assumed the night shift duty in sentry post at around 9:00 pm. “He is believed to have fled away with an AK-47 rifle along with the ammunition as he was not found inside the post,” sources said.
Army and SOG visited the spot and launched a massive manhunt to trace out the missing cop.
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