Telangana man among 3 ISIS militants killed in Srinagar encounter: police

Hyderabad: Telengana police has identified the third militant, killed along with Esa Fazli and Syed Owais this week in south Kashmir, as a resident of Bhadradri-Kothagudem district of Telangana who followed ISIS' ideology and had fled to the Valley last year to join militancy. 

Three militants, including Fazli and Owais, both of whom left their B.Tech third year course to join militancy, were killed in the encounter on the intervening night of March 11 and 12, a development seen as a blow to the attempts by ISIS to gain ground in the Kashmir Valley. 

After a request for identification sent by Jammu and Kashmir police, the Telangana police came out with a small press note in which it claimed that the person was identified as 26-year-old MD Toufeeq hailing from Bhadradri-Kothagudem district of Telangana. 

"It is learnt that MD Toufeeq, a native of Manguru, died in an encounter with security forces on the intervening night of March 11-12 in Hakura area of Anantnag district along with two other Kashmiri militants," the statement said. 

Toufeeq was radicalised into the Islamic State ideology through social media and went to Kashmir to participate in terrorist activities of the ISIS, according to the release. 

It clarified that he was not wanted in any of the criminal cases in Telangana. However, further details were being verified, it added. 

Senior Superintendent of Police (Anantnag) had written a letter to Telangana police citing reports in social media about the third militant hailing from that state. 

While asking them to share the details, the Jammu and Kashmir police had given the name of Mohammed Toufeeq alias 'Sultan Zabul Al Hind'. 

The two other slain militants were identified as Eisa Fazili of Srinagar and Syed Owais of Kokernag (Anantnag).

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AK-47 rifles, pistols and hand-grenades were found on the slain militants and “no collateral damage took place,” a police spokesman said.

The police had said that one of the slain militants was involved in a recent attack at a police guard post in Soura area of Srinagar leaving one cop dead.

The ISIS had claimed responsibility for carrying out the attack and said that the war has just begun.

A day after the February 26 attack, the ISIS had on its media website ‘Al Amaq’ said, “Assassinated an element of police in firing near city of Srinagar in Kashmir yesterday…A war has just begun.”

The group had also placed the photograph of the service weapon of Farooq Ahmed Yatoo, the policeman killed while guarding the residence of separatist Hurriyat Conference leader Fazl ul Haq’s Qureshi at Soura, on its website.