Two Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) militants and an 18-year-old youth were killed and over 50 civilians injured in an encounter and ensuing clashes with Security Forces (SFs) at Kundallan village of Shopian District of Jammu and Kashmir on July 10, reports Daily Excelsior. Two soldiers including a Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO) were also injured during the initial encounter. A Police spokesman said, “As the searches were going on, the militants hiding inside the house fired upon the search party leading to an encounter. Some of the civilians in the nearby houses were quickly evacuated by the security forces”. During the encounter both the hiding militants were killed and have been identified as Sameer Ahmad Sheikh son of Ghulam Mohammad Sheikh, resident of Rawalpora Shopian and Babar from Pakistan. They were affiliated with JeM outfit, the spokesman said. “Some civilians were also injured in cross firing at the site of encounter who were later evacuated to the hospital for medical attention. One of the injured persons [identified as Tamsheel Ahmad Khan (18)] later succumbed to his injuries while the other injured are stated to be stable now”, the spokesman added.
Over 50 protesters, seven of them with bullets and others with pellets and teargas shelling were injured during clashes near the encounter site. Thousands of people including men, women and youth shouted slogans while the local militant Sameer and the civilian Tamsheel Ahmad Khan was being taken for last rites. A spontaneous shutdown was observed in Shopian and its adjoining areas.
Meanwhile, militants managed to escape from security cordon in the forest area of Kandi village in Kupwara District on July 10 evening, reports Daily Excelsior. Troops of 47 Rashtriya Rifles (RR) fired upon a group of militants in the forest area of Sadu Ganga adjacent to Saderpora in Kandi village at around 5:05 pm after they spotted them. However, the militants managed to escape.