Two militants were killed in a gunfight with security forces in Samboora village of Pampore in Pulwama district of Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday, said the police. Two Army personnel were also injured. The identity and the affiliation of the two militants are yet to be ascertained.

A police official said personnel of the special operation group, Army’s 50 Rashtriya Rifles and Central Reserve Police Force launched a cordon and search operation after getting specific information about the presence of militants in the orchards. “As the forces zeroed in towards the suspected spot, the hiding militants fired upon them which was retaliated, triggering an encounter,” the police official told Greater Kashmir. “The militants however managed to escape towards a residential area.”

Pulwama has witnessed a spate in the number of gunfights between suspected militants and security forces in the last one month. On August 29, three suspected militants and one soldier were killed in a gunfight in Zadoora area of Pulwama district. The police had said that incriminating materials such as arms and ammunition were found on the suspected militants. On September 24, an unidentified militant was killed in a gunfight with security forces in the district.

Civilian injured in explosion at Anantnag gunfight site dies

A civilian injured in an explosion at the site of a gunfight in Sirhama area of South Kashmir’s Anantnag district last week died on Monday, reported Greater Kashmir. Yaseen Ahmad Rather succumbed at SMHS hospital in Srinagar around 3.30 am.

He was among the four youths who sustained injuries after a device went off at the gunfight site on Friday. Two Lashkar-e-Taiba commanders were killed in the night-long encounter. The deceased have been identified as Adil Ahmad Bhat and Abu Rehan. Bhat is a resident of Pulwama and Rehan was a Pakistani national. The police said both of them have been involved in planning and executing several terror attacks, including civilian atrocities and attacks on security establishments in the Valley.