SOURCE: THE WEEK
Three militants, including Lashkar-e-Taiba commander Sajad Haider, were killed in a joint-operation by the CRPF and the police today, in Kreeri, Pattan in north Kashmir’s Baramulla district, said Director General of Police, J&K, Dilbagh Singh.
The encounter took place soon after the militants attacked a joint ‘naka’ of the police and the CRPF, at Kreeri, killing three security forces personnel. The security forces launched a search operation immediately and zeroed in on the militants.
In the ensuing encounter, three LeT militants including Haider, and two of his associates, Anayatullah Mir, a local, and Usman, another LeT commander of Pakistan, were killed.
Singh said at a press conference in Srinagar that Haider was the most wanted LeT militant commander in Kashmir.
Comparing him with slain Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani who revived militancy in Kashmir between 2010 and 2016, he said Haider, too, lured local boys into militancy. Twenty of them have been arrested. Wani was killed in an encounter with security forces in 2016.
He said the arrested youth were working as overground workers (OGWs). He said Haider was involved in many “crimes including the killing of fruit traders and security force personnel”.
He said the LeT commander had adopted the strategy of another slain Hizbul Mujahideen commander Reyaz Naikoo—releasing video messages to lure youth and to issue fresh threats to political workers and forces. “His killing is a big success for security forces,” said Singh.
He said the LeT commander, along with Mir and Usman, had carried out the attack on the ‘naka’ party at Kreeri today but in retaliation, Mir was injured. Singh said Mir was shot in the head.
Usman was operating with Haider in north Kashmir, he said.
He said minutes after the attack on the ‘naka’ party, a special operations group (SoG) of police engaged the militants and one of them was hit just at the bund, a few metres away from the spot of attack.
Singh said the militants fled to the nearby orchard, which was cordoned off by the SoG and then, the Army and the CRPF, too, joined in and killed the militant.
Singh said that the injured militant was also killed soon after. The forces searched the area and found the third one and killed him too.
