Two top Lashkar-e-Taiba militants were killed in an operation by the police and the army at Andrus village in Pulwama on Friday. Policemen raided the militants’ hideout after a tip-off.
“In the morning, we asked the militants to surrender, but they opened fire on us,” said Bashir Ahmed Khan, the superintendent of police in Awantipora.
“We wanted to avoid collateral damage, which is why we evacuated civilians. Later, we again asked them to surrender, but they kept firing at us. That’s when we returned fire and killed the ultras.”
The encounter lasted four hours. The slain militants — Altaf Ahmad Mir alias Mohsin of Awantipora and Zahoor Ahmad Mir alias Haroon of Armulla, Pulwama — were in the Hizbul Mujahideen, but joined the Lashkar-e-Taiba last year. They were responsible for a car bomb blast in Kathidarwaza and the killing of two policemen in Pampore last year.
The encounter comes a day after director-general of police Kuldeep Khoda said forces have been put on high alert as militants might try to step up attacks before Republic Day.
In Delhi, home minister P Chidambaram praised the Central Reserve Police Force and policemen in Kashmir for Thursday’s operation in Lal Chowk, Srinagar.
