3 Militants Gunned Down By Security Forces In Srinagar, Search Operation Still On; Over 100 Eliminated From The Valley

According to the police, 2 militants were locals and the third one was a foreigner. The militants refused to surrender after repeated requests from the police and even their family members.

(Photo by HABIB NAQASH / AFP)

New Delhi: Three unidentified militants have been killed in an ongoing operation in Zoonimar area of downtown Srinagar after repeated efforts by the police, family members of the trapped militants to persuade them for surrender failed, police said today. Police said that a gunfight broke out in Zoonimar- Gilkadal area of Srinagar’s old city after joint teams of police and Quick Reaction Teams (QRTs) of CRPF cordoned off the area on the basis of specific information about the presence of militants. ALSO READ| India Surpasses 4 Lakh Mark With A New Record Of Over 15K Coronavirus Cases In 24 Hrs, Death Toll Reaches 13,000 Inspector-General of Police Kashmir range Vijay Kumar said that three militants are trapped in house. “Two of them are locals. IG said that one of the militants was involved in the killing and weapon snatching in an attack on BSF jawans at the Pandach area of Ganderbal district on 20th May. We launched the operation at night. For almost two-and-a-half hours, we tried to persuade the hiding militants to surrender. Repeated announcements to them by the locals of the area were also made. We also brought family members of two militants on the spot. They also appealed their children to surrender, but all efforts failed,” the IGP said. He said that two out of three militants are locals and one seems to be a foreigner. IG Kashmir said that as the hiding militants refused to surrender and opened fire at the forces triggering an encounter, three unidentified militants were killed. This is the second encounter in Srinagar’s downtown in the recent past. Earlier, two militants including the divisional commander of Hizbul Mujahideen outfit Junaid Sehrai were killed. The authorities have snapped mobile internet services in the entire Srinagar district as a “precautionary measure.” A day before yesterday, addressing a joint press conference with the police, the Srinagar based army’s 15 Corps commander Lieutenant General BS Raju had said that over 100 militants including top commanders of various outfits were killed. The army commander had stated that in the next few months, the army will try to ensure normalcy in full across the Valley. IGP Kashmir has already announced that from the next month, police will shift focus from South Kashmir to North Kashmir. Today’s encounter is believed to be a chance encounter as security officials have been maintaining that militancy was already wiped out in Srinagar but some were on the move, who got trapped after human and technical intelligence used by the security agencies. Also watch| Galwan Valley Clash: Gallantry Saga of brave soldiers of 16 Bihar Regiment