M A I N   N E W S

2 kidnapped cops slain, two escape
Six Hizbul men shot in Doda
Tribune News Service & Agencies

Jammu, March 17
Two of the four policemen kidnapped by militants after the attack on a police post in Udhampur district have been killed, while two others have managed to escape after the incident that left 11 dead late on March 15, an official spokesman has said here today.

The militants killed the two policemen by slitting their throats and their bodies were recovered from Snub Nullah near the site of attack today.

The dead policemen are Head Constable Nissar Ahmed and Special Police Officer Sheer Mohammad. Now, the toll in the massacre has risen to 13.

Constable Manzoor Ahmed and SPO Jan Mohammad reported back last night at a security picket in the Gool area after escaping from the captivity of the militants.

The militants had taken four policemen captive after killing nine police personnel and two civilians, besides injuring nine others, in the Ind village attack on Saturday.

Security forces and the police have launched a massive combing operation to track down the militants, who are believed to be of Hizb-ul-Mujaheedin, Harkat-ul-Jehadi Islami, Al-Badr and Lashker-e-Toiba.

Meanwhile, Governor Girish Chander Saxena, Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed and Deputy Chief Minister Mangat Ram Sharma visited Ind village today and offered condolences to the aggrieved families.

They also inspected the ravaged police post and the houses burnt by the terrorists.

The Director-General of Police, Mr A.K. Suri, and the IGP Jammu zone, Mr P.L. Gupta, visited Ind village yesterday and assured the villagers that additional security pickets would be established in the surrounding areas to contain militancy.

The Nationalist Congress Party has condemned the attack.

Meanwhile, six militants, including a district commander of Hizb-ul-Mujahideen, were shot by security forces in an encounter in the Bhaderwah area of Doda district today.

According to defence spokesman, Lt Col Bhanwar Rathore, acting on a tip-off, the forces raided a militant hideout in Basti village of Bhaderwah tehsil early today. As the security forces approached the hideout, the militants opened fire from their automatic weapons and the gun battle that followed lasted four hours.