A self-styled divisional commander of Hizbul Mujahideen was killed along with his bodyguard as security forces foiled an infiltration attempt and a conspiracy by the proscribed outfit to revive its activities in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch district early Monday, officials said. While the body of Hizbul commander Muneser Hussain was retrieved, his bodyguard’s body was still lying near the Line of Control (LoC) in the Degwar sector, the officials said.
Troops in the Degwar sector noticed the movement of some terrorists attempting to sneak into this side under the cover of darkness in the early hours of the day and engaged them in an encounter, the officials said. Jammu-based defence PRO Lt Col Suneel Bartwal said the two infiltrating terrorists were engaged by the joint team of Army and police in the Garhi Battalion area around 2 a.m.
“One terrorist fell down immediately while the second tried to run back to the LoC, was engaged and hit, and was seen falling down on the ground,” the officer said. The movement of the terrorists was picked up in the general area of Degwar Terva, he said.
Lt. Col. Bartwal said the body of one of the slain terrorists was retrieved and has been identified on the basis of police records as Hussain, a resident of Bagyladra village in Poonch who was a self-styled Divisional Commander of Hizbul Mujahideen. “In 1993, he went to Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) for arms training and came back three years later. He masterminded a number of attacks on Security Forces before returning to PoK in 1998,” the officer said.
