An Army officer and two jawans were killed during an 18-hour gun-battle which saw the elimination of five top militants of Pakistan-based terror outfits in Sopore district of North Kashmir.
The gun battle began last night when security forces got information about the presence of Lashker-e-Taiba, Hizbul Mujahideen and Harkat-ul-Mujahideen terrorists in Chinkipura, a heavily congested area of the Sopore town, official sources said.
The killed armymen have been identified as Captain Devinder Singh Jass, Naik Selva Kumar and Paratrooper Imtiyaz Ahmad Thokar of first PARA.
However, a report from Bhopal quoting Army chief Gen Deepak Kapoor said the dead officer was a Major.
A resident of Shopian in South Kashmir, Imtiyaz is the second armyman killed while fighting militants. In March last year, Paratrooper Shabbir Malik was killed fighting terrorists in Hafruda forests of Kupwara.
The militants suspected to have been killed included Bhasharat of Hizbul Mujahideen and Noman and Hamza of Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, Sallahuddin of Lashker-e-Taiba and a local militant Tauseef Mir, the sources said.
Located 54-kilometeres from Srinagar, Sopore turned into a virtual fortress with police, army and para-military men marching into the area. PTI
