A Pakistani militant of Lashkar-e-Toiba was killed in a late night gunfight at Samboora area of Pampore in Pulwama district of south Kashmir while two others managed to escape from the spot.A police official said that acting on specific information about the presence of militants in Akram Dar Mohalla in Samboora, police along with army’s 50 RR, 110 BN CRPF cordoned off the area and launched the search operation. “The hiding militants opened fire on the joint search party, triggering an encounter. During encounter, one Pakistani militant of Abu Ismail group of LeT outfit identified as Umar was neutralized,” he said.The police official said that two militants escaped from the encounter site, one among them was injured. “One AK 47 rifle was seized from the encounter site,” he said, adding that role of Umar in different crimes perpetrated by Abu Ismail group is being ascertained. During and after the encounter, clashes broke out between government forces and locals. A civilian was injured during these clashes.To protest the killing of the Pakistani militant, a spontaneous shutdown was observed by locals in Pulwama and Pampore areas.
All the shops and commercial establishments were closed while clashes were reported from Samboora and Pulwama in the morning. In the meanwhile, the government forces launched a cordon-and-search operation at Pingleena village of Pulwama to trace out the two militants who fled from Samboora area.While one militant namely Umar of Pakistan died, two of his other associates— ‘Rehman Bhai’ of Pakistan and Ayoub, a local managed to escape, one of them in injured conditions, at Samboora by taking advantage of darkness amid clashes during the gunfight.Official sources told news agency GNS that the cordon at Pingleena near B.Ed College was launched by reinforced joint team of army, SOG and CRPF after pressing sniffer dogs into service. Umar and Rehman Bhai, according to police were close aids of Abu Dujana. Dujana along with Arif Lilhari were killed in an encounter at Hakripora on August 1.The clashes broke out near Pingleena soon after the news about the cordon spread. The police and paramilitary CRPF used tear smoke shells to disperse the protesters. A cordon and search operation was also launched by forces in Batamaloo area of Srinagar today but no one was arrested.(GNS)