Hizb operational commander Yasin Ittoo killed in Shopian encounter

Kashmir operational commander of Hizbul Yasin Ittoo was killed along with two other militants at Shopian where 16 hour long gunfight ensued since Saturday.

He was identified by his family members who were brought to the scene of the encounter by police from their residence in Budgam.

Ittoo, a close associate of slain Hizbul Mujahideen's slain terrorist Burhan Wani is a resident of Chadoora in Budgam district and first joined militancy in year 1997 after crossing over to other side of the Line of Control.

Ittoo, often called a 'vintage militant' as he joined Hizbul Mujahideen in 1996, had surrendered in 2007 and later released on parole in 2014.

He joined the militant group again and was its self-styled chief operations commander. One Kevyt Konekivaan (KK) series rifle used by Itoo and two AK series rifles were recovered from the encounter scene.

According to Jammu and Kashmir police, Itoo alias Mehmood Gaznavi was the longest surviving local terrorist in Kashmir.

The other two terrorists have been identified as Irfan, a tech-savvy militant involved in online propaganda for the militant outfit, and Umar, who was personal security man of Ghaznavi.

Earlier reports suggested that Umar and Irfan were killed in fierce gunfight. However after recovering body from the debris, it was identified as of Muhammad Yasin Yatoo alias Mehmood Ghaznavi, the operational commander of Hizbul Mujahideen in Kashmir

On Saturday, two Army jawans were martyred while three soldiers, including an officer, were also injured in the 20-hour long operation.

OneIndia News