Body of third Jaish-e-Mohammad militant recovered from Maluroo

SRINAGAR - Following the fierce gun battle between the security forces and Jaish-e-Mohammad militants, the security personnel on Friday recovered the body of the third militant killed in the encounter at the Maluroo area on the outskirts of Srinagar.

The body was recovered from the debris of the house, which was razed during the operation on Thursday.

The search is on to trace arms, ammunition and any explosives that the militants might have been carrying.

Earlier, two militants were killed during the encounter with police and army personnel.

Police and troops of the 2 Rashtriya Rifles cordoned off the Maluroo locality, 15 kms from Srinagar, on Thursday morning following a tip off about the presence of at least three militants in one of the houses in the area.

The ultras opened fire on the security forces when they were zeroing in on the target house, belonging to a property dealer Abdul Rashid Bhat. The troops retaliated following which a gun battle ensued.

The militants also hurled hand grenades, one of which injured a cameraperson of the Asian News International multi-media news agency.

As the house was located in a populated area, the security forces had stopped the hostilities in between and sent a group of people to persuade the militants to surrender. However, the ultras refused to accept the offer and a gun battle followed.

Civilians were evacuated from the locality before the encounter was launched.

A helicopter was deployed to survey the area. (ANI)