New Delhi: Three districts in Kashmir have currently zero “active” local terrorists while prominent terror outfits, Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed have gone “headless” after their operatives were neutralised by the security forces and commanders in multiple operations and encounters, said a senior police officer, reported news agency PTI.
The three districts which are now “terrorist-free” are Bandipora, Kupwara, and Ganderbal, the officer said on Saturday.
However, Bandipora and Kupwara have at least seven foreign terrorists present each, the report added.
The Kashmir region, that comprises 13 police districts, has 81 terrorists at present with 29 being local while 52 are of foreign origin (Pakistanis), Additional Director General of Police (Kashmir zone) Vijay Kumar said.
The number of locals joining terror ranks also fell to an-time low of 99 over the last seven years, he said.
"The security forces have an upper hand now when it comes to containing terrorism and terrorists in the Valley. We are working to bring the figure of active, foreign and hybrid terrorists to less than 50 in the near future," the officer said.
He asserted that they were hopeful of eradicating terrorism from Kashmir in the next two years.
Kumar said the LeT and JeM are currently "headless" after the security forces neutralised their ranks in multiple encounters and operations.
Officials said Farooq Nalli, a Hizbul Mujahideen top operative, is the only active commander, since 2015, and he is on the radar of the forces, including the Jammu and Kashmir Police (JKP) and sister forces like the Army and the Central Reserve Police Force.
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There were about 15-18 active “hybrid” terrorists, Kumar added.
According to security agencies, hybrid terrorists are those who are radicalised online and are given pistols to kill one or two persons, identified or unidentified.
Most of these "hybrid" terrorists are located in South Kashmir area comprising Pulwama, Shopian, Kulgam and Anantnag districts, officials said.
(With inputs from PTI)