Ph.D scholar among 2 militants killed in J&K

Two Kashmiri militants, including a Ph.D scholar, were killed in a gunfight with security forces on Thursday in Jammu and Kashmir's Kupwara district, police said.

The fighting took place in Shatgund village. The police have not confirmed the identities of the militants.

Hizbul commander Manan Bashir Wani, a Ph.D scholar of Aligarh Muslim University who joined militancy in January, was trapped in the cordon along with another Kashmiri militant and died, police officials said.

Wani belongs to Lolab area of Kupwara.

A boy too was injured during intense street clashes between protesters and the security forces as news of the gun battle spread following the cordon and search operation in the village.

The boy with a gunshot injury in his leg was shifted to a Srinagar hospital, a police officer said.

Authorities have ordered closure of all educational institutions and suspended mobile Internet services in the district.

Classes in degree colleges of Bandipora, Baramulla, Pulwama and Srinagar districts have also been suspended as a precaution.

In a separate incident in Pulwama district on Thursday, militants fired at and injured Special Police Officer Bilal Ahmad in Karimabad village. He has been shifted to a hospital, a police officer said.

--IANS

sq/in/mr