Massive crowds attend funeral prayers of slain militant five times in Shopian village

Srinagar: Massive crowds attended funeral prayers five times one after the other for the slain militant Sameer Ahmad Wani at his ancestral village of Odoo in Shopian district of south Kashmir on Thursday.
Wani was killed along with an associate Firdous Ahmad of Ganawpora in a gunfight with government forces in Chaigund village of the district Wednesday night.
A 17-year-old civilian Shakir Ahmad Mir was also killed during the gunfight. Two girls were also hit by bullets during the gunfight. They are being treated for “critical” injuries in Srinagar hospitals.
Witness said thousands of people reached the Odoo village early today despite a shutdown to take part in the last rites of Wani.
“To accommodate the massive rush of people, the funeral prayers were held at least five times,” he said.
The mourners raised pro-freedom and pro-Islam slogans during the funeral.
Meanwhile, Internet services continued to remain suspended in the twin districts of Shopian and Pulwama since Wednesday evening.