Child, Lashkar militant among 5 killed, Imam shot at in J

Srinagar, Oct 20 (UNI) A child and four militants, including a top commander of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT), were among the five people killed while a PDP leader escaped unhurt and a major tragedy was averted by security forces when they seized a milk container fitted with 4-kg Improvised Explosive Device (IED) in Jammu and Kashmir since last evening, a police spokesman said today.

Two militants were killed in a more than nine-hour-long gunfight with security forces near Shalimar Mughal gardens on the city outskirts today, he added.

The spokesman said the bodies of the two militants were recovered from the debris of a house.

Two AK rifles and some ammunition were also seized from the encounter site, he said, adding the security forces suffered no casualty in the gunfight.

The search operation has been called off, the spokesman said, adding two houses were also damaged in the gun-battle.

He said the encounter erupted between militants and security forces at Channa Mohalla near Shalimar Mughal gardens and the Sher-i-Kashmir University of Agriculture Sciences and Technology (SKUAST) on the city outskirts early today.

Militants later took refuge in a house and fired upon the security forces from there, he added. After that house was brought down, ultras took shelter in another house nearby.

A spokesman of the Al Badr Mujahideen called up the local media here and claimed that five militants of the outfit were initially involved in the gunfight.

''Three militants later escaped the cordon to reach a safe destination while two decided to stay put and fight the Indian security forces,'' he claimed.

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