Kulgam encounter: ‘Pakistani militant shot dead after hand to hand fight’

Srinagar: The Army Friday said that the third militant in Friday’s encounter in Kulgam encounter was shot dead after a hand-to-hand fight between him and a Rashtriya Rifles soldier.

Addressing a press conference at Kulgam after the encounter in Nagnad area in which three militants were killed, sector commander 9 RR, Brigadier V S Thakur said there were civilians in the house where militants had taken refuge.

“Our troops showed resilience and didn’t even resort to speculative fire at the target house,” he said.

He said an appeal was made to the civilians to evacuate the house. “Two militants fired indiscriminately at the forces with small arms and also lobbed grenades with an Under Barrel Grenade Launcher (UBGL),” Brigadier Thakur said, adding that both were killed without causing any harm to civilians or the house they were hiding in.

He said when civilians were coming out, one remaining militant who was wearing a pheran (traditional Kashmiri gown) with a weapon inside, tried to move out with the civilians. “He was physically stopped and when he tried to use his weapon, there was a hand to hand fight between him and a soldier of 9 RR, who successfully shot the militant down. He was the Pakistani militant Waleed,” the army officer said.

He said a huge quantity of arms and ammunition was recovered from the three slain militants which include a US made M-4 Carbine, one Ak-47, five magazines, a few grenades and a UBGL.

Brigadier Thakur said that the slain militants were allegedly involved in the killing of five migrant Bengali labourers on October 29 last year in Kulgam, when EU delegation was on a Kashmir visit. “They were also involved in the killing of four civilians on April 4 this year at Nandimarg, Kulgam,” he said, adding that the slain militants “were also luring youth towards militancy”. (KNO inputs)