Four 'IS-inspired' militants killed in Shopian gunfight

Search Operations going on in 3 districts

SRINAGAR: In a major success, four local militants reportedly inspired by Islam State ideology were killed in an encounter with security forces in Shopian district early Sunday morning.

This was second incident of IS-inspired militants’ elimination after death of alleged IS commander and Valley’s most wanted militant Zakir Musa.

A joint team of security forces comprising of Army’s 44 RR, Central Reserve Police Force and Special Operation Group of Jammu and Kashmir Police launched a Cordon and Search operation in Daramdora village in Panzar area of the restive district Sunday morning, following information about the presence of militants there, a police spokesman said.

He said as the security forces were conducting searches, the hiding militants fired upon them.
The security forces retaliated leading to an encounter, the official said, adding four militants were killed in the gunbattle and their bodies were retrieved from the encounter site.

The killed terrorists have been identified as Rafi Hassan Mir of Kralchak Shopian, Suhail Ahmad Bhat of Batmuran Shopian, Showkat Ahmad Mir of Rajpora Pulwama and Azad Ahmad Khanday of Bamnoo Pulwama.

While Showkat Ahmad Mir had joined militant ranks in 2015, the other three had recently joined him.
While the spokesman did not comment on the affiliation of the slain militants, sources said they were affiliated to Ansar Gazwatul Hind, an offshoot of Al Qaeda.

All the militants were IS-inspired and were commanded by Showkat Ahmad Mir, they said.

Following the gunfight, Director General of Police, Dilbag Singh has also told reporters that the four militants killed were locals and belonged to the Islamic State-inspired Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind outfit
.

“Among the four killed militants, Showkat had a long history of terror crime records since 2015. He was initially part of proscribed terror outfit Hizbul Mujahideen,” the spokesman said.

Showkat, as per police records, was wanted by law for his complicity in a series of terror crimes including attack on security establishments and civilian atrocities. Several terror crime cases were registered against him including Case FIR No. 113/2016 of P/S Rajpora pertaining to firing on a guard post at Sheikhard, Case FIR No. 02/2017 of P/S Rajpora pertaining to the lobbing of grenade on security forces, Case FIR No. 20/2017 of P/S Rajpora pertaining to firing on civilians Bashir Ahmad Dar and Altaf Ahmad at Qasabyar in which Bashir Dar succumbed and Altaf was seriously injured, Case FIR No.
21/2017 of P/S Rajpora pertaining to civilian atrocities and Case FIR No. 01/2019 of P/S Rajpora pertaining to killing of a policeman Sameer Ahmad.

"Showkat was instrumental in recruiting Azad, Rafi and Suhail in terrorist ranks recently. Showkat was initially associated with Hizbul Mujahideen," he said.

“Pertinently with the efforts of Police and security forces, it was a clean operation. No collateral damage happened during the encounter,” the spokesman said.

“Incriminating materials including arms & ammunition was recovered from the site of encounter. All these materials have been taken in the case records for further investigation and to probe their complicity in other terror crime cases,” he added.

This was the second gunfight with AGH militants this month and came within a month of the new outfit's commander Zakir Musa's death in a gunfight in Pulwama district.

Zakir Musa was killed by the security forces in a gunfight in Tral area of Pulwama n May 24. Before he became the first militant commander to head the AGH, Musa had succeeded Burhan Wani, the Hizbul Mujahideen poster boy of homegrown militancy in the Valley.

On June 11, two local militants of the outfit were killed in a gunfight with the security forces in Awneera village of Zainapora area in Shopian. The two were identified as Shakir Ahmad of Shopian and Sayar Bhat of Kulgam district.

Meanwhile, the security forces have launched three cordon-and-search-operations (CASOs) in three districts of Kashmir.

The counter insurgent forces comprising of a joint team of army and Special Operational Group (SoG) of Police laid a siege to Cherwan village of Kangan in Central Kashmir’s Ganderbal district following the inputs regarding the militants.

Similarly, a CASO was launched in Renan village of Kralgund area of Kupwara by a joint team of security forces.

Reports said that on a specific input about the presence of militants a joint team of security forces including 30 RR, CRPF 92 Bn and SOG Kralgund launched search operations in the area.

The searches were going on at both the places till last reports poured in; however, no report of engagement between militant and security forces was confirmed.

On late Sunday night, security forces launched Cordon and search operation in Laam Tral area in South Kashmir’s Pulwama district.

Sources told that on specific inputs about the presence of militants joint team of forces including 42RR, Crpf and SoG Tral launched search operation in the area.

Reports said that huge contingents of forces have been deployed in the area and door to door search operation is on in the area.