The 22-year old militant Umer Fayaz Lone alias Hamaad Khan who reportedly escaped from an encounter here has emerged as the new face of Hizbul Mujahideen in the restive Tral township of south Kashmir.
Hailing from Seer hamlet, Khan joined the outfit in 2016. But it was in December 2017 he hit the headlines when his picture brandishing an automatic LMG went viral on the social media. Post 2016 when Hizb lost all senior rebels in its ranks from Tral including face of the militancy Burhan Wani, Khan, according to a senior police official “kept the outfit intact in the town.”
“That was the time when Hizb was on verge of getting wiped out from the area but he (Khan) maintained a very low profile and kept his small group intact. The emergence of Jaish-e-Mohammad outfit in the town also took the focus away from Hizb,” said the police official.
The data about militants who were killed from Tral in recent times is also an indication towards the low-key strategy adopted by Hizb in Tral, the hometown of slain rebel commander Burhan Wani. In 2017 while number of Hizb militants killed in Tral was five, in 2018 the outfit did not lose any militant from the area.
It was in May 2017 when Sabzar Bhat along with 16-year old militant Faizan Bhat was killed by government forces in Saimoh village of Tral, the command of Hizb was given to Khan. As per police sources Khan is working on the footprints of Hizb operational commander Riyaz Naikoo.
Superintendent of police Awantipora, Mohammad Zahid Malik, termed “chain of over ground workers” of Hizb in Tral as reason for fewer losses to the outfit compared to other rebel groups.
“Besides, they get good monetary support and shelter in Tral which clearly helps them to hide and reduce their movement,” the SP said.
As per sources, Khan was inducted as OGW by Burhan. Three months before Burhan’s death Khan joined the militant ranks. He is the lone militant in Tral who was recruited directly by Burhan.
Tral has been a stronghold of Hizb traditionally and the area has seen some of the top militant commanders since 1989. Before picking up gun, Khan was studying commerce at Government Higher Secondary School Lurgam. His father Fayaz Ahmad Lone is a businessman and his family also includes his brother and a sister.
At present, according to the police, Khan and his deputy Mohammad Qasim alias Jugnu are running the outfit in Tral. Qasim who was close friend of Zakir Musa joined the Hizb when Musa quit the group and became head of Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind. Zakir and Qasim were class fellows at Government Higher Secondary School Noorpora.
According to police during 2018 Khan-led group were involved in abductions of special police officers and launching attacks on security establishments and political workers. The group claimed responsibility of a grenade attack at Hamdania market Tral in June 2018 that left five policemen and four CRPF troopers injured.
In 2017, police blamed Khan and his companions for launching multiple attacks on security establishments in Tral and its outskirts. Like previous commanders, Burhan, Sabzar and Zakir Musa, Khan is considered as important figure in the Hizb.
As per police sources, on 5th January Khan managed to give slip to forces during the encounter at Aripal Tral. “Despite day long encounter he escaped from the spot and injured a paramilitary trooper,” a source informed.