LeT Group Commander Behind ‘Revival of Militancy in Kashmir’, Killed in Harwan Operation: Police

A police spokesperson said that Saifullah was also involved in the killing of BJP’s Bandipora President Waseem Bari, his brother and father.

Srinagar — The Jammu and Kashmir police on Sunday claimed to have killed a foreign militant in a military operation in the Harwan area of Kashmir’s capital city Srinagar. Police said that the slain militant was behind the revival of militancy in Kashmir.

The slain militant, according to police, has been identified as Safiullah alias Abu Khalid and Shawaz. A police spokesperson claimed that the slain is a resident of Karachi in Pakistan and was working as group commander of Lashkar-e-Taiba in Srinagar.

The spokesperson in a statement said that the police had inputs about the presence of a militant in Theed, Harwan area of Srinagar. He said that a joint operation was launched by Jammu and Kashmir Police, paramilitary Central Reserve Police Force CRPF and Indian Army in the area.

During the operation, he said, the militant denied surrender and “fired indiscriminately upon the joint search party which retaliated leading to a gunfight”.

In the ensuing encounter, Saifullah was killed and his body was retrieved from the site of the military operation.

The spokesperson said that as per police records, Saifullah was a categorised militant linked with militant outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba. He said that Saifullah had infiltrated Kashmir in 2016.

“He along with his associates was involved in an attack on an Army Convoy on NHW Bemina Bye-pass Srinagar near JVC Hospital Srinagar on April 1, 2017, resulting in injuries to three army personnel. He was also the mastermind behind the attack carried out by his associates at Lawaypora Srinagar in which two security forces personnel were killed and one AK-47 rifle was also snatched. He was involved in an attack on a police party of Police Station Bandipora at Gulshan Chowk Bandipora in which two police personnel were killed. Besides, he was also involved in the killing of BJP President Waseem Bari, his brother and father on July 8, 2020.”

The spokesperson said that Saifullah was behind the revival of militancy and a number of fresh recruitments of local youth into militant ranks. “He was also instrumental in reactivation of hardcore militant associates of Lashkar in the areas of district Srinagar and district Pulwama.”

The Kashmir Police chief, IGP Vijay Kumar, has said that with the killing of Saifullah, three foreign militants have been killed so far in Srinagar city within almost a month.

Meanwhile, the spokesperson said, the Jammu and Kashmir Police in Anantnag and 1 RR have arrested a militant associate identified as Feroz Ahmad Zargar, a resident of Qaimoh Kulgam. He said one Chinese Pistol along with a magazine and other ammunition has been recovered from his possession.”