Five militants including Jaish commander killed in Kashmir

The Armed forces on Sunday killed five militants, including a top Jaish commander Zahid Manzoor Wani, in separate encounters in Pulwama and Budgam districts of Kashmir. With the killing of Wani, the forces have eliminated one of the masterminds of various IED attacks that have taken place since 2017, said a top official.

The Armed forces claimed that the killing of Wani, who was active since 2017, was a major success and would arrest the recruitment of youngsters into the militant ranks. Wani’s name had also emerged during the investigation of the Lethpora attack in February 2019, in which 40 CRPF personnel were killed.

In one of the encounters in Naira village of Pulwama in southern Kashmir, the Armed forces killed three other militants, including a Pakistani, Kafeel, in an overnight operation.

The other two killed were identified as Waheed Ahmad Reshi and Inayatullah Mir, who was the son of the owner of the house where the encounter took place. Mir’s family claimed that he was a civilian and wasn’t even present in the house when the operation began. However, the police maintained that he was a ‘hybrid militant’ present with the militants but wasn’t listed as a militant with the forces.

“Last year, when we introduced the term ‘hybrid terrorist’, you (media) made a joke of us. But, Mir is a classic example of a hybrid terrorist, whose digital evidence proves it without any doubt,” said Vijay Kumar, Inspector General of Police in Kashmir.

He said Mir was asked to come out when a cordon was laid around his house but he refused and started firing. “We will register a case under UAPA against him and his family members as well,” said Kumar. He said that he provided all logistical support to Wani and the other militants. The police official reiterated that the number of active militants is below 200 for the first time and their aim was to bring it below 100.

In January, the forces killed 21 militants including eight foreigners in 11 operations across the Valley.

“This was not an isolated operation and is part of the series of human intelligence based operations that have been undertaken by 15 Corps in the past few months,” said Lieutenant General Prashant Srivastava, General officer Commanding of South Kashmir based Victor Force.

The police claim to have recovered two AK 47 rifles, one M4 carbine with telescope, two pistols and 12 grenades, which were destroyed, and other incriminating material at the encounter spot.

In another encounter in Chrar-e-Sharief area of Budgam district of central Kashmir, the armed forces killed a local Lashkar-e-Toiba militant Bilal Ahmad Khan and recovered an AK-56 rifle and other incriminating material from the spot.

Since April 2020, the J&K authorities have stopped handing over the bodies of the militants to their family and do not allow their burial in their native graveyards. This was aimed to scuttle any major funeral procession, sloganeering and protest gatherings. Instead, they were buried by the authorities in presence of a few relatives in some cases, in far-off graveyards in Uri, Handwara and Sonamarg areas of northern Kashmir.