TRF Commander Hamza among 3 terrorists killed on Thursday in Kashmir

 

Three terrorists were killed in two different encounters in the Kashmir Valley on Thursday. While two terrorists were killed in South Kashmir, the third was killed in a brief encounter in Srinagar. Two army personnel also got injured in the South Kashmir gun fight.

 

In Srinagar , police said while acting on a specific input , they neutralised a foreign terrorist affiliated with proscribed TRF ( The Resistance Front ) in a brief shootout near the Hazratbal Shrine . He was identified as Haider alias Hamza , a Pakistani national . Two terrorists accompanying him managed to flee . IGP Kashmir said , three terrorists including a foreigner came to snatch weapon from a police man guarding the adored shrine of Hazratbal and in a brief shootout , one foreign militant has been killed while two managed to escape from the spot . IGP Kashmir termed the killing of Haider a big success . He said , killed terrorist was a Pakistani national affiliated with proscribed terror outfit TRF. He was associated with top TRF Commander Mehran .

 

Meanwhile in another gunbattle , the security forces zeroed in on a group of terrorists in Naina village of Batpora area of Pulwama district on Thursday morning. After the presence of terrorists holed up in a structure near local mosque was discovered , they were given ample chances to surrender . Instead, they fired indiscriminately upon the joint search party leading to an encounter . The joint team exercised maximum restraint to secure no damage to the mosque . Two army personnel sustained splinter injuries during the encounter .They were evacuated to the hospital where their condition is stable . Police said , both the holed up terrorists were killed in the operation . Both were affiliated with LET ( Lashkar -e - toiba ) and identified them as Shahid Ahmed from Batpora , Pulwama and Fayaz Sheikh from Shalspora , Ganderbal. Both were categorised terrorists and were wanted in many terror related cases , the police said. Referring to the Pulwama and Srinagar encounters , IGP Kumar said, " terrorists have changed their strategies and take shelter in mosques and shrines in order to trigger religious sentiments and create law and order problems in the valley . However , we will defeat all such nefarious designs".