Three terrorists, affiliated with LeT, gunned down in Pulwama encounter

At least three terrorists, affiliated with the proscribed terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), were killed by security forces during an encounter in the Pahoo area of Pulwama in south Kashmir on Sunday. Based on specific inputs about the presence of terrorists in the area, security forces launched a search operation there, a police official told news agency PTI. 

He added that the search operation turned into an encounter after the terrorists fired upon the security personnel, who retaliated. In the exchange of firing, three terrorists have been killed so far.

The encounter broke out on a day Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the union territory, his first public event since New Delhi abrogated Article 370 in 2019. Modi remotely inaugurated a tunnel and work on two hydropower projects before delivering a speech that was punctuated by his government’s developmental achievements. He said that the territory was put on a path of unprecedented development since 2019.

Earlier on Saturday, the Jammu and Kashmir Police said that two Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) terrorists were eliminated during the encounter in the Mirhama area of Jammu and Kashmir’s Kulgam.

A number of arms and ammunition were also recovered from their possession.