Day after J&K encounter deaths, anti-militancy operation resumes; 2 militants encircled so far

A day after two Army personnel and a senior police official were killed in a gunfight with militants in Anantnag district of South Kashmir, an operation to flush out militants in the heavily-forested area resumed on Thursday morning. So far, two militants have been encircled by security personnel, police said.

Among the two militants encircled during the operation, which was halted overnight, is a local LeT militant Uzair Khan.

The ongoing operation was halted overnight after the Army Colonel, a Major and a Deputy Superintendent of Police of the Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) Police were killed. Police identified the dead security personnel as Colonel Manpreet Singh, Commanding Officer of 19 Rashtriya Rifles in Kokernag, Major Aashish Dhonchak, and Deputy Superintendent of Police Himayun Muzamil Bhat.