Suspected Pulwama Mastermind Shot Dead In Encounter; 4 Soldiers Martyred

Days after the Pulwama terror attack on a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) convoy, the army managed to kill Jaish-e-Mohammad commander Kamran. An aide to Pakistani terrorist Masood Azhar, Kamran used to recruit, radicalise and train terrorists in J & K. However, the encounter with militants resulted in further deaths of our gallant soldiers.

It all began when the army got a tip-off that three Jaish terrorists, including handler of Pulwama suicide bomber, were hiding in Pinglan region in Jammu and Kashmir. They then initiated a search operation late last night together with the Special Operation Group of the Jammu and Kashmir police, personnel of the 55 Rashtriya Rifles and two battalions of the CRPF.

They fired some warning shots at the suspected spot, which was when the militants opened fire. The ensuing gunfight with Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorists saw four soldiers, including Major DS Dondial killed.

That being said, the target of the mission, Kamran (suspected mastermind of the February 14 attack) was shot dead along with another terrorist- Ghazi Rasheed. Rasheed was an Afghan national and IED specialist.

Soldiers who lost their lives have been identified as Head Constable Save Ram, Sepoy Ajay Kumar and Sepoy Hari Singh, reports NDTV. A civilian, Mushtaq Ahmad also lost his life in the encounter, said the police adding that two soldiers have also been injured.

CRPF revealed that their standard operating procedures (SOP) put in place to secure their convoys shall be tweaked post the attack. “We have decided to add new features to our convoy movement to and from Kashmir,” said CRPF Director General RR Bhatnagar.

“Apart from traffic control, there will be changes in the timings of convoy, their halt locations and movement in coordination with other security forces like the Army and the J-K police,” Bhatnagar added.

India Today reports, search operations in the region are attempting to trace the militants. Mobile internet services have been suspended as well as a curfew is imposed in Jammu city as a necessary precaution.

Our prayers are with our gallant security forces, who have stopped at nothing to secure the safety of us citizens.

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