Sopore, Sep 13: Two Pakistani militants belonging to Jaish-e-Mohammad outfit were killed in an encounter with government forces in Sopore area of north Kashmir’s Baramulla district on Thursday.
Sopore town witnessed a heavy exchange of fire early Thursday after government forces cordoned off a house in Teliyan Arampora area.
There was credible intelligence about the presence of Jaish militants and forces were deployed.
Speaking to ‘Kashmir Images’, Superintendent of Police, Sopore, Javaid Iqbal said, “On specific inputs about presence of militants, SOG Sopore, 22RR and CRPF laid a cordon during the preceding night in Teliyan Arampora Sopore.
“As the forces approached towards the house where militants were hiding, they opened indiscriminate fire on forces, triggering an encounter.
“In the five-hour-long gunfight two militants of Jaish-e-Mohammad outfit got killed,” he said adding that forces recovered bodies of two militants from the debris.
Police identified the slain militants as Ali alias Athar and Zia-ur-Rehman.
According to police, “Ali, who had infiltrated into the Valley in 2014, was one of the oldest militants of the JeM and was involved in the killing of civilians, attacks on security forces and detonating Improvised Explosive Devices in north Kashmir.
“Ali was the mastermind of the IED explosion in January this year in which four policemen were killed,” police said.
Police said during today’s gunfight, police evacuated civilians from the encounter site to safer areas before engaging the militants.
Some arms, ammunition and incriminating material were recovered from the encounter site, a police spokesman said.
Police also recovered fake Aadhaar cards from the killed militants which might have been used by the duo to conceal their identity.
Meanwhile, internet was suspended and educational institutions closed in Sopore as a “precautionary measure,” officials said.
