Terrorists’ Houses Flattened, OGWs Rounded Up in Valley After Pahalgam Attack
Terrorists’ Houses Flattened, OGWs Rounded Up in Valley After Pahalgam Attack

Summary

In the aftermath of the Pahalgam massacre that claimed 26 lives, authorities in Kashmir have launched an aggressive crackdown, demolishing terrorist properties, raiding hideouts, and detaining hundreds of suspected overground operatives across the Valley to prevent future attacks.

SRINAGAR: Authorities in Kashmir have intensified a wide-scale offensive against terrorists and their backers following the Pahalgam massacre, demolishing properties of extremists, storming their hideouts, and detaining hundreds of overground operatives for interrogation.

 

Security agencies are targeting known terror affiliates and their enablers across the entire expanse of the Valley, aiming to establish a strong deterrent against future attacks resembling the one in Pahalgam, the officials stated.

 

Terrorists had unleashed gunfire on Tuesday at Baisaran, a well-frequented tourist destination in the highlands of Pahalgam, Anantnag district, claiming the lives of 26 tourists, most of whom were visitors from various states.

 

ALSO READ: Srinagar Police Raids Homes of Terror Links Across City

 

In the past 48 hours alone, homes belonging to five terrorists or their aides have been razed, with authorities asserting that similar punitive actions will be taken against others linked to terror activities.

 

Mysterious explosions obliterated the residences of two active terrorists— Aadil Thoker in the Bijbehara region of Anantnag and Asif Sheikh in the Tral sector of Pulwama district.

 

Thoker has been identified as one of the trio of terrorists directly involved in the brutal tourist killings in Pahalgam, while Sheikh’s potential role in the attack remains under active investigation, officials disclosed.

 

The blasts occurred following late-night security raids on Thursday, they added.

 

Moreover, hundreds of suspected overground operatives (OGWs) and their supporters, predominantly from four districts in South Kashmir, have been detained as part of the sweeping operation aimed at locating the terrorists responsible for Tuesday’s bloodshed.

 

During one such search mission in Bandipora district on Friday, an alleged OGW was killed by an terrorist gunfire, according to officials.

 

The deceased, Altaf Lalli, had guided security teams to a terrorist hideout in the Kulnar sector of Bandipora when the extremists opened fire. Two policemen sustained injuries in the encounter, while the terrorists managed to escape, officials said.

 

On Saturday, the crackdown expanded into Srinagar, with coordinated raids executed across more than a dozen locations, including Safakadal, Soura, Pandach, Bemina, Shalteng, Lal Bazar, and Zadibal neighborhoods.

 

Meanwhile, continuous search operations are underway in Anantnag district, with heightened surveillance efforts in place.

 

Security forces have set up numerous mobile checkpoints throughout the district to scrutinize and intercept any suspicious movements, the officials added.