Army foils infiltration in Kupwara; militant killed

Azhar Qadri

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, July 23

The Army on Sunday killed a militant as it foiled an infiltration bid in the remote Machil sector of north Kashmir’s Kupwara district, officials said.

The militant was killed near the fence close to the Line of Control as soldiers intercepted a group of three or four militants attempting to sneak into the Kashmir valley, Army and police officials said.

In a brief update, the Army said the infiltration bid was foiled in the Machil sector and one militant was killed. It said the militant’s weapon had been recovered. The identity and group affiliation of the militant was not immediately known.

Superintendent of Police, Kupwara, Shamsher Hussain, told The Tribune that a group of three or four militants was intercepted early morning as they were approaching the fence near the Line of Control. “They had not yet crossed the fence. There was an exchange of fire and one militant has been killed,” the official said.

The official said the firefight had ended and the other militants in the group are believed to have escaped back to the other side of the Line of Control. However, a search operation continued in the area.

It is the second infiltration attempt in north Kashmir in recent days as two militants were killed last week while trying to sneak into the Kashmir valley through the Gurez area of Bandipora district.

Security forces have intensified the counter-insurgency operations in the Kashmir valley and killed more than a hundred militants this year so far.

Meanwhile, a senior police official today said three overground workers (OGWs) of militants were arrested in Srinagar last week when they were intercepted at Tengpora on the outskirts of the city.

Inspector General of Police Muneer Khan said the three OGWs were transporting weapons brought from north Kashmir to south Kashmir, where most of the local militants are concentrated.

The senior police official said one AK-47 assault rifle and ammunition was recovered from the possession of three OGWs which they were transporting to militants in south Kashmir.