Handwara encounter: The two terrorists who were killed in an encounter on Sunday were from Hafiz Saeed-led terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), news agency ANI reported. The agency also said that one of the terrorists had come from Pakistan and the identity of the other terrorist was being ascertained.
“Both the killed terrorists were affiliated with proscribed terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). One has been identified as a foreigner from Pakistan, the identity of the other terrorist is being ascertained,” ANI said in a tweet.
The encounter, which began on Friday morning, continued for 56 hours and ended on Sunday. A police spokesperson, while speaking to PTI, said that the operation at Babagund area of Kupwara took time as it posed difficulties to the security forces due to the topography of the area. The bodies of both the terrorists were recovered from the site of the encounter.
In the encounter, five security personnel — three from CRPF and two cops — lost their lives.
The encounter had begun when security forces launched a search operation in Babagund area in north Kashmir following information about the presence of militants. The police spokesperson informed that the area where the terrorists were hiding was very congested and civilians in the adjoining houses had to be evacuated to the safer places away from the site of encounter.
According to the report, the security forces recovered incriminating materials including arms and ammunition from the site of encounter. Police have urged the people to not go near the encounter site as there could be some stray explosives.