Pulwama :-Two separatist guerrillas were killed on Thursday in an overnight gunfight between holed up militants and security forces in South Kashmirs Pulwama district.
Two militants including Manzoor Ahmad Dar of Samboora (Pulwama) and a Pakistani national have been killed in Gusoo village encounter, a senior police officer said.
Security forces including troops of 53 Rashtriya Rifles, 183 battalion of CRPF and special operations group (SOG) of state police had surrounded Gusoo village in Pulwama district late Wednesday following reports that two to three militants were hiding inside a house there.
As security forces came closer to the suspected house, the militants fired upon the security forces after which a gunfight broke out which ended around 1.30 a.m.
Searches are still going on in the area. The exact identity of the slain Pakistani militant is being established, the police officer added.
A police official said that both the slain militants were wanted by NIA and carried a bounty of Rs five lakh each. They were involved in Udhampur attack and were active from last 15 months in South Kashmir, he said.
Meanwhile, Lashkar-e-Toiba Thursday paid rich tribute to the slain duo. In a statement to a local news agency, CNS, Lashkar Chief Mehmood Shah said that the sacrifices carry a message that people of Kashmir dont accept Indian occupation.
He appreciated the role of those parents whose sons have been laying their lives for Kashmir cause. We appeal all sections of people including Hurriyat leaders to cooperate with militants in exterminating the Informers. These Informers are responsible for the killings of our budding youth, he said.
Thousands Attend Funeral of slain Militant
Thousands of people on Thursday attended the funeral of a Lashkar-e-Toiba militant in south Kashmirs Pulwama district who was killed in an overnight gunfight. The district observed a complete spontaneous shutdown amid clashes throughout the day.
Eyewitnesses told Srinagar-based news agency that soon after people heard about the killing of local Lashkar militant, Manzoor Ahmad of Alochi Bagh Pulwama, they turned up in thousands and marched towards his native village.
The witnesses said that the mourners staged anti-India and pro-freedom protests in several parts of the district while there was a complete shutdown. They said the mourners thronged the village of the slain and participated in funeral procession.
The witnesses said that not once but the funeral of the slain was offered four times at various places including Eidgah Samboora and Alochi Bagh. In all these funerals nearly 30,000 people participated while women too were on the sidelines. The mourners raised pro-Islam, pro-militant and anti-India slogans.
The witnesses further said that soon after the burial of the slain in a local martyrs graveyard, the groups of youths took to streets at Kakpora, Murran, Pulwama Town and other areas and resorted to heavy stone-pelting on government forces who responded by firing teargas shells and pepper gas canisters. The entire district including Pampore, Kareemabad, Samboora, Kakpora and other areas shut down against the militants killings.