A retired police officer was shot dead by suspected militants at a mosque in Jammu and Kashmir’s Baramulla on Sunday, the police said.

Mohammed Shafi, a retired senior superintendent of police, was shot when he was offering prayers at a mosque in the district’s Gantmulla area, the police said. He succumbed to his injuries.

The area has been cordoned off, and further details are awaited.

The killing comes three days after an attack on the Army left four soldiers dead and two injured in the Poonch district. The People’s Anti-Fascist Front, an offshoot of Pakistan-based militant group Jaish-e-Mohammed, claimed responsibility for the attack.

A day after the attack, three civilians were found dead near the site. They were identified as Safeer Hussain (43), Mohammad Showket (27), and Shabir Ahmad (32), and were part of a group of eight civilians picked up for questioning about the Poonch attack.

The deaths of the civilians have sparked an uproar in the Union Territory, with the Jammu Kashmir National Conference saying that the allegations suggest unacceptable misuse of force.

The Jammu and Kashmir government has said it has launched legal action into the matter and announced compensation for their families. The Army said it will cooperate with investigations into the deaths.