A militant was killed in a brief shootout with security forces at a village in Shopian district during the wee hours of Friday.
The slain militant was identified as Ishfaq Ahmad Sofi sonof Mushtaq Ahmad Sofi of Model Town-B, Sopore.
Ishfaq, according to a senior police official, wasaffiliated with an IS-backed outfit which the official did not name. However,another senior police official told Greater Kashmir that they were stillascertaining the group affiliation of the slain militant.
“It may take some more time,” he added.
A police official said that at around 4 a.m a joint team ofarmy’s 23 PARA and SOG men surrounded Ramnagri area of Herpora, some 15 kmsfrom Shopian town, following the credible information about the presence ofmilitants in the area.
The forces surrounded the area and carried out searches. Inthe ensuing gunfight, a militant got killed in a farm, the official said. Thebody of the deceased was handed over to his family.
Later in the day, a police spokesperson in a statement saidthat Ishfaq had initially joined proscribed Harkat-Ul-Mujahideen militantoutfit (HuM) and he along with his associates was involved in a series ofcrimes including grenade attacks on CRPF bunkers at Safa Kadal, Soura andpolice station Khanyar.
Sofi, according to the spokesperson, was subsequentlyarrested and after his release on bail, he again got recycled and joined themilitancy last year.
“He got involved in planning and executing the attacks.He was also involved in attacks on security establishment and many othercivilian atrocities,” the spokesperson said.
He added that incriminating material including arms andammunitions were recovered from the possession of killed militant.
Following the encounter, a group of young men, according tothe eyewitnesses, hit the streets and threw stones on forces near Bataporacrossing in Shopian. Soon the entire town witnessed a shutdown while thetraffic vanished from the roads.
Authorities shut the mobile internet services in the area.
This is the second encounter this month in the area. On May3, three militants were killed during a gunfight with forces in Adkhara,Imamsahib village.