Budgam encounter: Top LeT commander killed by joint forces

A top Lashkar-e-Taiba commander was killed in an encounter with joint security forces in Jammu and Kashmir’s Budgam district. The operation was launched in the Korag-Yousmarg area following specific intelligence inputs about the presence of terrorists, the Army said

Srinagar: A top commander of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) was killed in an encounter with joint security forces in Jammu and Kashmir’s Budgam district, the Army said on Wednesday.

The encounter took place late Tuesday evening in the Korag area of Yousmarg. The Army’s Srinagar-based Chinar Corps said on X that, based on specific intelligence inputs, a joint search operation was launched by the Indian Army, Jammu and Kashmir Police and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF).

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“Vigilant troops observed suspicious activity and upon being challenged, terrorists opened fire, prompting a fierce exchange of gunfire during which one terrorist [was] neutralised,” the Army said.

The slain terrorist was identified by officials as Fauzi Musa. He was wanted in connection with several attacks in Jammu and Kashmir.

Musa had escaped an encounter in the Yousmarg hills on September 5, in which his close aide, Yasir, was killed, officials said.

The operation was launched after security forces received specific information about the presence of terrorists in the area. As the joint forces intensified searches and moved towards a suspected hideout, the terrorists opened fire, triggering an exchange of fire in which the LeT commander was killed, officials said.

The operation was still underway in the area, officials said.

Security forces have heightened vigilance across Jammu and Kashmir following reports of terrorist movement in the Pir Panjal mountain range, which connects the hilly districts of the Jammu division with the Valley.

Counter-terror operations are continuing in the densely forested areas of Poonch, Rajouri, Kishtwar, Doda, Ramban and other districts, officials said.

Security forces are also maintaining heightened vigilance in the forested and hilly areas of Shopian, Kulgam, Anantnag, Baramulla, Kupwara and Budgam to prevent terrorists from establishing hideouts in the Valley.