M A I N   N E W S

Five jawans killed in ambush
Ultras gun down 6 in Udhampur
Tribune News Service and UNI

Srinagar, September 10
Five soldiers were killed and seven others injured when militants ambushed a Jammu-bound convoy of the Army at Awantipora, 30 km from here, on the Srinagar-Jammu national highway this morning.

A Defence spokesman said here that two militants appeared from a lane at Awantipora and opened indiscriminate fire on the vehicles at about 9.30 a.m. Two vehicles came under the militants’ attack, who opened fire from automatic weapons and used hand grenades. Three jawans died on spot, while two others later succumbed to their injuries. The seven injured in the attack were admitted to hospital here.

The Lashkar-e-Toiba has claimed responsibility for the attack, a spokesman of the outfit told a local news agency.

The attack led to the disruption of traffic on the busy Srinagar-Jammu national highway for about one hour.

The attack on the Army convoy came barely 12 hours after former chairman of the Hurriyat Conference (Omar) Prof Abdul Gani Bhat said they would persuade gun-wielding youths to give up arms following the successful first round of talks with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

This was also the second major incident after the Hurriyat Conference held talks with the Dr Manmohan Singh on Kashmir in New Delhi on September 5. On September 7, two militants made an abortive bid to enter the Civil Secretariat, seat of the Jammu and Kashmir Government. However, both were killed, while one police constable lost his life and five others were wounded.

JAMMU: Militants killed six persons, including four minor boys and a girl, and injured seven others at Darmari in Mahore in Udhampur district last night.

Police sources said Special Police Officer (SPO) Mohammad Rafiq and some other people were sitting in the house of village defence committee (VDC) member Mohammad Ashraf at Darmari at about 8 pm when the militants struck.

The militants first threw a grenade inside the house and then resorted to indiscriminate firing, resulting in the death of six persons on the spot, while seven others sustained serious injuries. The militants later fled the spot.

The dead were identified as Shoukat Hussain (13), Mumtaz Ahmad (13), Rafiqa (16), Jamal Din and SPO Rafiq’s sons Usman (4) and Umar Bilal (1).

The injured were later admitted to a local hospital. However, following deterioration in their condition, they were referred to the Government Medical College Hospital here today.