In a hit and run militant attack, two policemen were killed in Barzulla area of Srinagar on Friday in the second attack in the last three days in the city.
The slain were identified as constables Mohammad Yousuf of Zurhama Kupwara and Suhail Ahmad Logripora Anantnag.
The incident took place around 12.30 pm when the militants opened fire on the policemen in Barzulla Chowk. The cops were having tea at the roadside Dhaba.
“One (militant) opened fire on our men, they were more than one in number,” a senior police officer in know of the things told the Greater Kashmir.
Both the policemen were rushed to SMHS Hospital, however they succumbed to grievous injuries.
“Constables Mohammad Yousuf of Zurhama Kupwara and Suhail Ahmad were shifted to a hospital after being shot at by the unidentified militants where both of them succumbed to their injuries,” police said in a tweet. “We pay our rich tributes to the martyrs and stand by their families at this crucial juncture.”
The CCTV footage of the attack which went viral on social media shows a militant opening fire at the policemen. He can be seen pulling out an assault rifle hidden inside his pheran, and firing at the policemen at a close range.
“I only heard gunshots and policemen in a pool of blood,” said a nearby shopkeeper. “I came after half an hour and locked my shop.”
A passerby said that gunshots continued for a few seconds. “I saw people running for cover and I too left the spot,” he said, adding that later he came to know two cops had been killed.
The incident created panic in the entire area. The traffic remained halted for some time. Some shops around the incident site were closed. Extra barricades were erected in the entire city and more security forces were deployed to thwart any other attack.
This was the second militant attack in the last three days in Srinagar city. On Wednesday evening, militants fired upon a shopkeeper in Dalgate area and wounded him. He is being treated at a local hospital. The attack in the city had come as a 24-member delegation of envoys from various countries visited Kashmir on Wednesday to assess the ground situation.
Later a wreath-laying ceremony was held at District Police Lines here led by Inspector General of Police Kashmir, Vijay Kumar, and was attended by senior police and administrative officers.
“The Barzulla attack was carried out by two Lashkar-e-Toiba militants including a local resident,” the IGP told reporters on the sidelines of the ceremony. “Both attackers have been identified and among them one is a Saqib, a local resident.”
He said that both the policemen were not carrying any weapon and were on routine duty. “They were totally unarmed,” he said. “We will track down both the militants soon.”
The Kashmir police chief said that had the policemen carried weapons, “they might have retaliated.”