3 Hizbul Mujahideen militants gunned down in Jammu and Kashmir

Mahore (Jammu and Kashmir), Aug 11(ANI): Three Hizbul Mujahideen commanders, plotting to disturb Independence day and involved in the recent killing of three villagers in Mahore area of Jammu and Kashmir's Reasi district, were gunned down by security forces in a swiftly planned operation at Gajna Top on Tuesday.

"This is a big success for security forces, all the three were local militants and were struggling to get them for quiet some time. From Gajna top we were getting regular info that ultras are planning a meeting there," said Dy. S.P operation Reasi Surinder Chowdhary.

"Today morning we made contact with them and asked them to surrender but instead they opened fire, the encounter lasted two hours in which all three militants were killed. Hide-out of the ultras was blasted in the operation. Security forces didn't suffer any casualties in the operation," Chowdhary added.

Official sources said that a joint team of 58 Rashtriya Rifles and 9 Para launched a search operation at Gajna Top along Khata Ji Ridge in Mahore area on Monday evening following specific input that three top militants of Hizbul Mujahideen were meeting in a hide-out.

Troops spotted the hide-out late on Monday night, but maintained a vigil over it to see whether more militants could join the three. As no militant turned up, the Army personnel stormed hideout of the ultras in wee hours and engaged them in a gun-battle.

Chowdhary also claimed that these militants were planning to disrupt the Independence Day in Reasi district.

Documents recovered from the possession of slain militants revealed that they were plotting massacre of minorities in Mahore on the directions of Abu Khateeb (code name), a Hizbul commander based in Muzaffarabad area of Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK).

The plot has been foiled with the killing of all three militants.

Three AK-56 rifles, one pistol, 50 AK rounds, one wireless set, one mobile telephone, five kg explosive, six grenades, eight detonators, two pouches and incriminating documents were recovered from the site of encounter. By Tahir Nadeem Khan (ANI)