Anantnag: Uzair Khan among two LeT ultras killed in Kokernag

Samaan Lateef

Srinagar, September 19

The J&K Police said on Tuesday two LeT militants, including local recruit Uzair Khan, had been killed in the Kokernag encounter in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district.

Additional Director General of Police (Kashmir) Vijay Kumar said, “Khan’s body has been retrieved while the body of the second terrorist is lying close to the encounter site.”

“We will continue the search to find if there is any more terrorist in the area,” he said. Earlier, Kumar, along with the Army’s GoC, 15 Corps, Commander Rajiv Ghai, visited the Gudool area in Kokernag to take stock of the ongoing anti-militancy operation that entered the seventh day on Tuesday. The operation was initiated on intelligence inputs that militants were present in a forest hideout.

However, the militants swiftly detected the presence of a joint team comprising the Army and the police.

It led to a barrage of gunfire from the militants, causing chaos and hindering evacuation efforts. Officers found themselves stranded in the line of fire.

During the initial exchange of fire, Col Manpreet Singh lost his life, while Major Ashish Dhonak and DSP Himayun Muzammil Bhat sustained injuries. Later, they succumbed to their wounds. The Army said two soldiers were also injured during the encounter. On Monday, the body of a soldier, Pardeep Singh, was recovered from the encounter site, taking the death toll of the security forces to four.