Jammu and Kashmir: 4 terrorists killed in Pulwama gunfight

At least four terrorists were killed in an encounter that broke out on Saturday morning between terrorists and the security forces in Rajpora area of Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama district, news agency ANI reported. The forces launched search and cordon operation after they received information about the presence of terrorists. "Exchange of fire underway between security forces and terrorists in Rajpora, Pulwama. Search operation was launched after inputs that terrorists were hiding in the area," ANI tweeted.

#UPDATE Four terrorists have been killed.Arms and ammunition recovered https://t.co/23BX6oZUie

— ANI (@ANI) December 29, 2018

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On Friday, a Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorist was killed in a brief encounter in South Kashmir’s Pulwama district. “Based on a credible input about the presence of militants in Banderpora area of district Pulwama, a cordon and search operation (CASO) was launched in the morning hours jointly by Police and security forces in the area,’ police had said.

“As the searches were going on, the search party was fired upon by the terrorists. The fire was retaliated leading to a gunfight. In the ensuing encounter, one militant was killed. The slain militant was identified as Ishfaq Yousuf Wani, a resident of Koil Pulwama in South Kashmir. The area where the encounter took place was an orchard,” said police officials.

“Wani was involved in several ‘terror crimes’. He was wanted by the law for his complicity in a series of terror crimes including attacks on security establishments and civilian atrocities,” the Indian Express quoted an official as saying. 

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Hurriyat Chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq on Friday said that Cordon and search operations (CASO) launched in the extreme cold weather should immediately stop. Taking to micro-blogging website Twitter he wrote, “At #JamaMasjid today. Grossly Inhuman on part of GOI that even in this severe cold as mercury has dipped to minus 8 degree celsius, children women and men forcibly brought out of their homes for conduct of Cordon and search operations (CASO)! This should be immediately stopped.”