J&K: Hijbul militant killed in encounter

A Hizbul Mujahideen militant was killed on Monday during an exchange of fire between the security forces and militants at Arwani village in south Kashmir’s Kulgam district, officials said.

According to reports, the security forces tried but were unsuccessful in making the local militant surrender.

An Army personnel has reportedly sustained injuries in the firing exchange, which ended with the killing of the militant. The body was retrieved from the site and the killed militant has been identified as Shahid Khar of Kulgam.

Informed sources said that on a specific input about the presence of militants in the area, a joint team of the police and army launched an operation, but were fired upon by the hiding militant, and retaliated.

As per police records, Khar was affiliated to proscribed terror outfit Hizbul Mujahideen and was wanted by the law for his involvement in terror crimes, including attacks on security establishments.

Cases were registered against him including FIR No. 72/2018 and FIR No. 01/2020 at Quimoh police station.

Arms and ammunition were recovered from the site of encounter and have been seized for further investigation and to probe his complicity in other terror crimes, officials said.

People are requested to cooperate with the police till the area is completely sanitised and cleared of all the explosive materials, if any, they added.

With the killing of Khar, 16 militants, including Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Qari Yasir, have been killed in six encounters in the last 28 days. During the sameperiod, nine militants, including Hizbul divisional commander Naveed Mushtaq, have been arrested in Kashmir in the first month of Vijay Kumar taking over as the Inspector General of Police, Kashmir.

Yasir and two of his associates — Burhan and Musa — were killed at Hari Pari Gam in Pulwama on Saturday.

The Army said that with the killing of Yasir, the Jaish leadership has been wiped out from the Valley. Yasir was an IED expert and played a supervisory role in the February 14 Pulwama attack last year in which 40 CRPF men were killed.