Police constable, militant killed in Jammu & Kashmir's Tral encounter

A police constable and a militant have been killed in an encounter between security forces and around five top Hizbul Mujahideen militants who were holed up in a house in Tral on the city outskirts.

Officials sources said special forces of the Army were deployed to carry out a combing operation in the area in south Kashmir.

The gunfight broke out late last evening after security forces cordoned off the house and is still continuing.

The J&K police constable has been identified as Manzoor Ahmed, officials said.

The body of a Pakistani militant has been recovered and search is on for others, they said.

Curfew has been clamped in this area, 10 km from here, as protesters had gathered near the encounter site. A CRPF jawan's rifle was snatched by them, they said.

Half of the house was brought down by the security forces but militants were still firing on them.

The poster boy of banned Hizbul Mujahideen terror outfit, Burhan Wani, belonged to this area.