An over 40-hour-long gunfight between militants and security forces ended on Friday morning after bodies of two local Lashkar-e-Taiba militants were found. Five houses were damaged in the encounter.
An Army spokesman said three holed-up militants were killed. “The bodies of two terrorists and three weapons were recovered,” said the spokesman.
Since Wednesday afternoon, the holed-up militants in a residential area, Hassanabad-Arwani, located on the border of Kulgam and Anantnag districts, kept firing at the search party of the security forces. The Police said DNA samples from the bodies had been collected for identification.
“The operation concluded when a joint team of the police and the CRPF’s quick action team stormed the house and cleared it. The cover fire to the storming team was given by the Army troops,” said a police official.
Two slain militants, identified as Rahil Amin and Majid Zargar, were LeT commanders in south Kashmir. The third body apparently remains buried under the debris.
Meanwhile, locals clashed with the security forces at a number of places in south Kashmir. There were sporadic incidents of stone pelting in Srinagar and north Kashmir.
Shutdown yet again
In the wake of a civilian killing near the encounter site on Thursday, the call for a shutdown given by the separatists affected normal life in the Valley.
MLA Engineer Rashid has asked Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti to persuade New Delhi for a unilateral ceasefire against militants.
