Srinagar: As the security, forces were conducting search operation to apprehend or eliminate militants who are in hiding the militants opened fire at the security forces, which turned out to become an encounter, and in the exchange of fire, eliminated six militants in Shopian and Pulwama districts of Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday. During the exchange of fire between the two sides, a civilian and a soldier also lost their lives, police said. In the Pulwama encounter, the security forces brought down three Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) terrorists. In the Shopian encounter, the security forces eliminated three militants. In both the cases, it was an ensured gun battle between the two sides. In Pulwama, the gun battle took the lives of a civilian and a soldier, a police spokesman said. After the police and the security forces received a credible input, they launched a cordon and search operation in the morning in Delipora area in Pulwama district to nab the militants. While the security forces were engaged in evacuating the target house, the militants that were in hiding started firing at the security forces indiscriminately. The army Jawan by name Sepoy Sandeep attained martyrdom and the civilian who was killed was Rayees Dar. The bodies of the three slain terrorists were recovered. The bodies of the terrorists killed in the encounter were identified as Naseer Pandith of Kareemabad Pulwama, Umar Mir of Shopian and Khalid from Pakistan. As per the police records, the militants that were killed were attached with the terror outfit Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM). The slain militants were wanted by law for their involvement in a series of terror crimes including the attack on security establishments and civilian atrocities, he said. Arms and ammunition were recovered from the site of encounter. After the police and the security forces received a credible input about the presence of Ultras, they launched a cordon and search operation in Handew area, in Shopian. As the search, operation was in progress the hiding terrorists fired on the search party. Initially when the exchange of firing commenced one army jawan identified as Sepoy Rohit also was injured. He is undergoing treatment in the hospital. The security forces returned the fire which resulted in an encounter. Following the encounter three terrorists were killed and the bodies were retrieved from the site of encounter,” he added. The identities and other details is being ascertained, the spokesman said. ]]>
