Musa trapped, then fled : Reports

An intense clash between villagers and security forces, helped Zakir Musa and his ally to escape the forces after they were trapped in a house in Tral village of Jammu and Kashmir. The villagers pelted stones for hours distracting the security forces from their target.

Zakir Musa, an A++ category militant is reportedly on the list of 12-most-wanted militants. / Photo: PTI File

New Delhi:  In a cordon and search operation of the Indian Army in Tral village of Jammu and Kashmir, al-Qaeda's Chief in India Zakir Musa, was reportedly trapped in a residential house on Friday evening. However, the locals of the area got into a clash with the security forces, reportedly giving Musa a chance to flee. According to reports, Musa could have been easily caught had the villagers not come up for his rescue. The security forces had to use teargas to deal with the crowd. Zakir Musa and his aide were reportedly hiding in a house in his native village of Tral. The security forces had zeroed in the area when the locals reportedly started pelting stones at the army men, thus hindering the operation for some hours. By the time, the pelting stopped, firing from the targeted house had also ceased, giving an indication that the targets were gone. However, due to darkness the operation had to be suspended and is expected to be resumed on Saturday. The security forces had cordoned off four nearby villages to block all the escape routes of the militants who are currently in hiding. However, according to the reports they are trapped now. The police said that the cordon shall remain in place at Noorpora as they suspect presence of militants. Though there were reports of escape of Zakir Musa, no official confirmation has yet been given. Peer Mohalla, Shah Mohalla, Daggarpora and Noorpora are the villages that have been have cordoned off. Zakir Musa is a former Hizbul Mujahideen commander , who has reportedly formed his own outfit with aid from al-Qaeda. He is in the list of 12-most-wanted militants.