J&K encounter: Forces foil suicide attack

Police say slain militant was affiliated to militant outfit Mujahideen Gazwatul Hind; police prevent militant from entering station

By NT Correspondent

Srinagar:

As security forces are struggling to stop the targeted killings in Kashmir, an attempt by fidayeen militants that was foiled in Srinagar on Thursday night has set alarm bells ringing for security officials.
Fidayeen attacks - a term used to describe suicidal attacks by militants were frequent in the valley in the early 2000s and saw a steep decline after 2010. While Jaish-e-Mohammed carried out a series of fidayeen attacks in 2018, there has not been any attack since.
On Thursday evening, a gun battle broke out between militants and security forces in the Srinagar’s Bemina area. On Friday morning as the anti-militancy operation concluded, Kashmir Police said that one militant has been killed. The slain militant, identified as Aamir Riyaz of Southern Pulwama district was affiliated to militant outfit “Mujahideen Gazwatul Hind”, according to the Police.
Police sources on Friday said that the Bemina encounter was a fidayeen attempt.
“It(attack) was unsuccessful and they (militants) couldn’t enter the police station, which was their target,” said a senior police officer. “The militant was tasked to carry out a fidayeen attack.”
A statement purportedly issued by Gazwatul Hind on late Thursday night had said, “three fighters of the fidyayeen squad.... have carried out a fidayeen attack in district Srinagar.”
A senior police officer said on Friday that two more militants may have escaped in the initial gunfire. “The operation is over and we could find only one body during the searches,” the officer said.
Sources also said that slain militant Riyaz is also related to the Pulwama suicide bomber Adil Dar who blew himself in 2019 in a CRPF convoy in South Kashmir’s Pulwama, killing 40 CRPF personnel.
The fresh fidayeen attempt is seen as another challenge for the security grid in the valley. JK Police sources say that the security of all major security installations has been beefed up. “Ground personnel has been asked to remain alert,” said another senior officer.
The biggest fidayeen attack in Kashmir was witnessed in South Kashmir’s Pulwama in 2017 when militants stormed a commando training center of CRPF, killing four personnel. There has been a spate of targeted killings, including of migrant workers, last month, which has now emerged as a major challenge for the security forces in the valley. The Union Home Ministry has rushed additional troops to the valley to deal with the situation.

Forces recover body of the slain militant

Security forces recovered the body of a slain militant in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kulgam district on Friday, taking the number of ultras killed in an ongoing operation in the south Kashmir district to two. The encounter in Kulgam broke out on Thursday. The police said the body was recovered in the morning even as the search operation continued in the area. The encounter broke out in Chawalgam on Thursday after the forces launched a cordon-and-search operation in the area. (PTI)