New Delhi (Sputnik): At least 20 civilians suffered pellet injuries in Jammu and Kashmir state on Friday during clashes with the Indian security forces that erupted after the killing of three militants from the Hizbul Mujahideen terror group.
The clashes occurred in the state's Shopian district in the morning.
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Three out of the 20 hit were struck by by pellets in their eyes, and were referred to a hospital in the state capital city of Srinagar for specialised medical attention while the others were being attended to in Pulwama and Shopian, other sectors of the state, a Police official said.
The security forces lobbed tear smoke shells and resorted to firing pellets to quell the stone-throwing crowd, witnesses said.
According to police, Lateef Ahmad Dar, a resident of Pulwama district and the lone surviving terrorist of Burhan Wani group, was among the three terrorists gunned down by security forces. The two others were identified as Tariq Molvi and Shariq Ahmad Negroo, the residents of local villages in Shopian district.
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"The trio was affiliated with Hizbul Mujahideen militant group," a police official said.
#IndianArmy#OpArdhkher (Shopian). Three terrorists killed.Weapons & warlike stores recovered. Joint operation in progress.@adgpi@PIB_India @SpokespersonMoD @crpfindia @JmuKmrPolice
— NorthernComd.IA (@NorthernComd_IA) May 3, 2019
Burhan Wani was a commander of Kashmiri group Hizb-ul-Mujahideen, perceived to be a prominent face of resurgence of terrorism in Kashmir whom security personnel neutralised in 2016. His killing had triggered massive civilian unrest, especially in the form of stone-pelting crowds, in which around 100 protestors were killed and thousands others were injured mostly with pellets.