Srinagar, January 31
Three militants, who had taken shelter in a village mosque, were killed today by Army troops after nearly a seven-hour-long siege of the shrine in Jammu and Kashmir’s Badgam district, an Army spokesman said.
The militants had entered the mosque at Danespora, about 35 km from here, this afternoon. A search party of 34 Rashtriya Rifles, launched an operation to flush them out, he said.
Finding themselves trapped, the ultras opened fire on the search party from inside the mosque and in a tactical operation the troops eliminated all three militants, the spokesman said.
He said the mosque suffered no damage in the operation.
The bodies have been removed and a large quantity of arms and ammunition was recovered from them, he said, adding that the identity of the ultras and their group affiliation was being ascertained.
The security forces arrested a militant, Pervez Ahmad Rather, along with a hand grenade at Rafishad in Baramula district last night.
Another gunbattle between militants and the security forces was going on at Watlar village of Kokernag in Anantnag district today, official sources said.
The encounter took place when the troops of 36 Rashtriya Rifles raided a house in the village, they said.
Meanwhile, militants shot at and injured Ashaq Hussain Bhat at Waoghama in Bijbehara locality of Anantnag district last night.
Bhat, a salesman by profession, was fired upon by militants when he was returning home. His condition was stated to be serious, a police spokesman said. He said militants also lobbed a grenade on the house of Amma Maikoo
at Sagam in Kokernag area of Anantnag, damaging the house. However, none was hurt in the explosion.
Meanwhile the BSF arrested Pakistan-trained militant of the Hizbul Mujahideen along with 4.5 kg of RDX here last evening, a BSF spokesman said today.
The militant identified as Fayaz Ahmad Lone, a resident of Chakravaty-Bhaderwah in Doda district, was arrested by the troops of 96 battalion of the force along with the local police from the house of Mudasir Manzoor Pahloo at Rajbagh locality, the spokesman said.
A rocket,
accidentally fired by the troops camping in the area, exploded at Gazalibad locality of the HMT on the outskirts of the city around 9.15 a.m., causing minor damages to seven residential houses, police said.
Militants exploded an improvised explosive device at Keegam village in Pulwama district of south Kashmir when some security personnel were patrolling the area, the police said.
— PTI
