Late-night encounter in Baramulla

Baramulla, Nov 7: A late-night encounter erupted in the Sagipora area of north Kashmir's Baramulla district on Thursday.

An official said that the encounter erupted between security forces and militants in the Sagipora area after the joint teams of forces launched a search operation in the area.

"As soon as we received an input about the movement of terrorists, the joint teams of the Army and J&K Police cordoned the area," a top Police official said.

He said that around two to three militants were believed to be trapped in the encounter.

“While launching a search operation in the area, the security forces tried to move closer to the suspected spot following which the terrorists hiding in the area fired indiscriminately at the security forces. The firing was retaliated by troops leading to an encounter,” the official said.

According to the officials, the militants are hiding inside a residential house.

The indiscriminate firing from both sides was going on for a long time.

However, the Police official said that the firing may be suspended for the night but the area would remain under a tight cordon.

This is the third encounter in north Kashmir this week.

“The movement was suspected and we launched the Cordon and Search Operation (CASO). They will be killed,” the official said.

On whether militancy was getting revived in the area given the back-to-back encounters, the Police official said that the number of militants in north Kashmir had never reduced to zero.

“We can’t say if they are trying to revive or whatever their purpose is but we are sure that whenever we receive input about their movement we track them down,” the official said.

He said that the Sagipora encounter was a joint operation of J&K Police and 22 RR of the Army.

“Joint forces are actively evacuating civilians from the encounter site to ensure their safety,” the official said.

Meanwhile, the Army’s Srinagar-based Chinar Corps posted on its official X handle: “A joint operation was launched by the Army and J&K Police in Panipura, Sopore based on specific intelligence regarding the presence of terrorists. Suspicious activity was observed by vigilant troops and on being challenged terrorists opened indiscriminate fire. Our troops effectively retaliated. Operation is in progress.”

A separate post by Kashmir Zone Police on its official X handle reads: “Acting on a specific input regarding the presence of terrorists in Panipora Sopore area of Baramulla, a joint anti-terrorist operation was launched by Police and security forces. During the search operation, an exchange of fire took place. Further details will follow.”