Srinagar, Aug 30: The Border Security Force today killed Ghazi Baba, the Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorist who masterminded the attacks on Parliament and the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly. BSF said that four other terrorists of the Pakistan-based terrorist outfit have also been killed in the encounter that started early this morning in Srinagar.

While Jaish-e-Mohammed has denied reports of Gazi Baba`s death, they have released the names of three other militants killed today.


BSF commanders say the third body is still under the rubble and were angry on being repeatedly questioned about the identity of those killed.
In Delhi, the Centre said that it was confident the BSF had got the right man but just to put doubts at rest one of the key accused in the Parliament case, Mohd Afzal, who is currently in a Delhi jail, will be also be asked to confirm the identity.

"Since the Jaish has denied that Ghazi Baba is dead, we will get further confirmation from the other accused in the Parliament attack case, here in Delhi," said I D Swami, Minister of State for Home.
The encounter began on a tip-off by a wireless intercept that zeroed-in on code 39 - the call sign assigned to Ghazi Baba on the clandestine terrorist radio network.

Security forces raided a house at Noorbagh-Qamerwari, a residential area of the city, which was being used as a hideout by the terrorists.

Within moments, the hideout was cornered. The trapped Jaish terrorists opened fire on the BSF troops at around 3:30 am (IST). But by around noon, the BSF blasted the house in a bid to end the encounter.

At the end of the ten-hour-long encounter, BSF said five militants including JeM chief in Kashmir Qazi Baba had been killed. One BSF constable was also killed and seven BSF jawans were injured.

There was confusion over the number of militants hiding in the house. Mohammad Shafi Dar, owner of the house where the encounter took place, said there were only two militants. But the BSF claimed to have killed five militants in the encounter.


Dar, was also injured in the firing and has been admitted to a hospital. Other inmates of the house, two women and four children, were rescued from the premises.

The encounter comes two days after a night-long fierce gun battle between a Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) militant and the police at a city hotel.

Bureau Report