2 unidentified militants killed in brief gunfight at Shopian

Shopian: Two unidentified militants were killed in a brief encounter at Chakura area of South Kashmir’s Shopian district, Police said Wednesday.
Official sources said joint teams of police, army’s 34 RR and 178 battalion CRPF laid a cordon in Chakura village of Shopian district on the basis of a specific input about the presence of militants in the area.
A police official said when the presence of militants was established, they were cornered from all sides and asked to surrender. “However, they fired indiscriminately at the forces triggering an encounter,” the official said.
“In the ensuing encounter, two militants were killed and their bodies were retrieved from the site of encounter. The identification and affiliation of the killed terrorists is being ascertained,” the official said.
A police spokesman in a statement issued on Wednesday said that incriminating materials including arms and ammunition were recovered from the site of encounter. “All the recovered materials have been taken into case records for further investigation and to probe their complicity in other terror crimes,” he said, adding that the last rites of the slain militants shall be performed after conducting their medico-legal formalities including collection of DNA.
“In case any family claims the slain militants to be their kith or kin, they can come forward for their identification at PCR Kashmir Srinagar and participation in last rites at Handwara,” the police spokesman said. People are requested to cooperate with police till the area is completely sanitized and cleared of all the explosive materials, if any, the spokesman said