Lashkar Commander Zakir Ganai Killed In Encounter In J&K's Shopian, Hunt On For Second Terrorist

A self-styled commander of the banned Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Zakir Ahmad Ganie, was killed in a joint anti-terror operation by security forces in Jammu and Kashmir's Shopian district. According to police, Ganie, a 26-year-old resident of Kulgam, had gone missing in September 2023 before allegedly joining The Resistance Front (TRF), an LeT offshoot, and was later booked under the UAPA. The operation began on July 3 after surveillance cameras detected the movement of two militants in a dense orchard in Meemandar. A joint team of the J&K Police, Army's Rashtriya Rifles and the CRPF cordoned off the area, leading to intermittent gunfights over five days. Security forces are continuing the operation to track the second trapped militant, believed to be Latif.