Four local militants were killed in a gunfight with government forces in Lassipora area of Pulwama district on Monday. Police said they were a 'combined group of Hizb-ul Mujahideen and Lashkar e Taiba' outfits.A police official said that acting on a specific tip-off, police, army and the CRPF laid a siege around a residential house where four militants were hiding. “After firing warning shots, militants resorted to heavy firing on forces triggering a gunfight. All four militants killed,” the official told KNO. “By the first light of the day, operation was over and all four militants were killed. There was not even a scratch to the house where they were hiding as it was a very clean operation.” The slain, according to police, were wanted for several militant related cases including attacks on forces establishments. "While three of the slain militants are from Shopian, one belongs to Pulwama," a police official told KNO. The slain were identified as Zaffar Paul son of Mohammad Ahsan resident of Dangerpora Shopian, Tauseef Ahmad Yattoo son of Abdul Aziz resident of Gudbug Pulwama, Aqib Ahmad Kumar son of Bashir Ahmad resident of Hellow Shopian and Mohammad Shafi Bhat son of Ghulam Mohammad resident Sedow Shopian.Tawseef, police said, was involved in conspiring and executing many attacks in the area.
The operation in which the four were killed was launched following a 'credible tip off' about their presence in the area. Following which a joint team of 55 RR, SOG and CRPF sealed the area and launched search operation to flush out the hiding militants, an officer involved in the operation told KNO. As such the joint team of forces intensified the searches and fired some warning shots towards the suspected spot, the hiding militants opened fire triggering off a gunfight. The gun-battle ended with the killing of the four militants. Police said that among the slain Tauseef had a long history of militant related activities and cases were registered against him including FIR No. 281/2016, 509/2016, 19/2018 registered in police station Pulwama and 33/2018 registered at police station Litter.Similarly, Zaffar was involved in many crimes cases which include FIR No. 290/2017, 307/2018, 13/2019, which were registered against him in Police Station Shopian. "Aqib Ahmad and Mohammad Shafi were also involved in crimes in the area," he said. Police said that the incriminating materials including arms and ammunition were recovered from the site of encounter. “All these materials have been taken in the case records for further investigation and to probe their complicity in other cases,” he said.(KNO)