Four Army jawans, Hizbul militant killed in encounter

Four Army jawans and a Hizbul Mujahideen militant were killed in a fierce gunbattle in south Kashmir`s Pulwama district.

Srinagar: Four Army jawans and a Hizbul Mujahideen militant were killed on Friday in a fierce gunbattle in south Kashmir`s Pulwama district.

The encounter broke out at Buchoo village in Tral area, 40 km from here, when Army troops launched an operation following a tip off about the presence of a group of ultras, officials said. "As the troops were laying the cordon around the village, the militants hiding in the nearby forest opened fire, resulting in the death of three jawans," an Army spokesman said. He said additional security forces were rushed to the area and a manhunt launched to track down the militants. The security forces confronted militants again, triggering a fresh round of exchange of fire, the spokesman said. Another jawan sustained grievous injuries during the operation and later succumbed to injuries at a hospital, the spokesman said. He said one militant was killed during the operation, which was going on till reports last came in. The gunbattle comes a day after a top Lashkar-e-Toiba militant, involved in the killing of several civilians in Pattan and Sopore area of north Kashmir, was killed in an encounter with police in old city area. On a tip off about presence of self-styled LeT commander Hilal Molvi in the area, police had laid a cordon around Narparistan in Fatehkadal area of the city and killed the militant after brief exchange of fire. PTI