6 militants, a soldier killed in J&K gunfights

Six militants, including three from Pakistan, and a soldier were killed and two policemen injured in two encounters in Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday.

Three militants were killed in the Naranag forest area of the Ganderbal district in an encounter with security forces, a police source said. They, according to the source, could have entered the Valley from across the Line of Control (LoC) in the Gurez sector.

The Pakistan army had been violating the ceasefire in the Gurez sector for the last three days with the aim to facilitate infiltration of terrorists, said defence sources.

In another encounter, three militants were killed in Thor village of Ramban district. The militants had entered a house and taken its inmates hostage, who were rescued. A soldier was also killed and two cops were injured in the gunfight.

The slain terrorists belonged to the Hizbul Mujahideen. Arms and ammunition were seized from them. They had infiltrated with an aim to revive militancy in the Chenab Valley, the police said.

Meanwhile, militants hurled a grenade at the security forces at Nawa Kadal in the old Srinagar area. The grenade exploded without causing any damage, the police said.IANS