Unidentified militant killed in Ganderbal encounter

An unidentified militant was killed in an ongoing encounter at Kulan, Gund area of Kangan in Central Kashmir’s Ganderbal district on Tuesday, police said.According to wire service—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), police said that acting on a specific tip-off, search operation was launched in Kulan are of Kangan in Ganderbal in the wee hours.

“As the suspected area, where militants were believed to be hiding, was zeroed in on, they opened indiscriminate firing triggering an encounter,” a senior police officer said.He said that after heavy exchange of firing between the two sides for nearly an hour. “In the ensuing gunfight, a militant was killed,” the officer said.Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Ganderbal Muhammad Khalil Poswal said that one militant has been killed in the encounter. “Search operation is on in the area,” he told KNO.A police spokesman in a statement said that the body of slain militant has been retrieved and his identity is being ascertained. He said that arms and ammunition has been recovered from the site of encounter site.

Sources said that since there were apprehensions of presence of two militants in the area, thorough search operation was being launched in the area. “We haven’t called off the encounter yet,” sources said. Meanwhile, police urged people not to get closer to the encounter site. Pertinently, Ganderbal encounter is second gunfight within 24 hours. On Monday, two militants including a Lashkar-e-Toiba commander Abu Talha were killed in north Kashmir’s Bandipora district. (KNO)