Srinagar, July 14: Three security personnel and an equal number of militants were among eight people killed and four others injured as ultras attacked security forces at three places in Jammu and Kashmir, official sources said today. Two Army personnel, identified as riflemen Amar Singh and Anoop Kumar of 19 Raj Rifles, were killed when a group of militants opened fire on a security patrol at Hapatnar forest in Machil sector of Kupwara district in North Kashmir early today, the sources said.
They said Army troops returned fire but the ultras managed to escape into the forest. A massive hunt was going on to nab the militants who are believed to have sneaked into the Kashmir Valley from across the border.
Another security jawan was shot dead when unidentified militants struck at Regal Chowk in the heart of Srinagar this afternoon. Three militants, including two foreign mercenaries, were killed and three BSF jawans injured in an overnight encounter at Patlipora in Chadoora area of Badgam district in central Kashmir.
A picture of Osama bin Laden was found from the possession of the dead militants, the sources said. They said the two foreign militants, who were yet to be identified, owed allegiance to Jaish-e-Mohammad outfit while the local militant, Farooq Ahmad, belonged to the Hizbul Mujahideen. Bureau Report