Srinagar, June 19

The Valley has been witnessing a surge in encounters in the past few days. A day after the Army said security forces had killed a top militant in Bandipora, another encounter broke out in Sopore area of north Kashmir on Wednesday. The police said two militants were killed in today’s encounter.

The militants were killed by the security forces in the Hadipora area of Sopore, around 60 km north of Srinagar. The identity of the militants was yet to be ascertained, the police added. The gunfight broke out after a joint team of forces intensified searches towards a suspected spot and the hiding militants fired at the forces. A soldier and a policeman were also injured in the encounter. They were shifted to a hospital, where doctors said their condition was stable.

On Tuesday, Commander, 3 Sector Rashtriya Rifles (RR), Brigadier Vipul Tyagi, had said that based on inputs, the Indian Army, CRPF and J&K Police had launched a joint operation on the night of June 16-17 in Bandipora. During the ambush, he said, the party saw suspicious movement and after a thorough check-up, the ambush party opened fire. “In this encounter, one terrorist, Umar Lone of Husankhoie Pattanwas was killed,” the Army officer had said on Tuesday.

For the past few weeks, the Army officer had said: “Indian Army, police and CRPF forces have maintained high operational momentum and have killed terrorists who have been operating for a long period of time. We are getting the full support of people in this.”