SRINAGAR — Inspector General of Police (IGP) Kashmir Vijay Kumar Tuesday said that a top Lashkar-e-Toiba commander and a foreign militant were killed in an overnight gunfight at Maloora area of Parimpora on Srinagar outskirts.
He said the Lashkar commander Abrar Nadeem was first arrested at Parimpora by the joint security teams yesterday afternoon.
“He was taken to a police station where joint teams of police, army and CRPF interrogated him. Abrar disclosed that he had kept his weapon AK-47 at Maloora area after which joint teams cordoned the area and launched the searches in a house,” the IGP Kumar said addressing a press conference at Police Control Room (PCR) Srinagar.
He said that forces had taken Abrar along and when the house was being searched, a foreign militant was hiding inside, who fired at the forces, in which Abrar sustained injuries besides the CRPF men including an officer.
“Abrar had not disclosed about foreign militant hiding in the house,” the IGP said, adding that in the night-long gunfight, Abrar and the foreign militant were killed. “Two AK-47-rifles were recovered from the encounter site,” he said.
The IGP said that Abrar was wanted in the Lawaypora shoot-out case where he along with another militant Khursheed Mir had killed three CRPF men in March this year.
“Khursheed Mir was killed in the recent Sopore gunfight and the rifle he had snatched from the slain CRPF man was also recovered from him. TRF outfit had recently released a video in which Khursheed was shown snatching the weapon and firing at the CRPF men and Lawaypora,” the IGP Kashmir said.
He said the killing of Abrar and another foreign militant is a big success for the forces. “While arresting Abrar, joint teams had recovered a pistol and a grenade,” IGP Kumar said.
Asked whether Lashkar has its active men in Srinagar, the IGP said that after “radicalization and indoctrination”, six youth from Srinagar joined militancy of which one was killed recently.
“Five others are active and will be killed or arrested soon,” he said, adding that there is a “network of sleeper cells” also active in Srinagar and efforts are on to break that nexus soon.” — (KNO)