Militants abduct 7th civilian in Shopian, police in a huddle

Inspector general of police Swayam Prakash Pani rushed to south Kashmir, hours after Suhail Ahmad Ganaie was abducted from his home on the outskirts of Shopian where two militants were killed in an encounter in a separate incident on the same day.

Suspected militants abducted, and later released, a young man in south Kashmir’s Shopian district on Sunday, prompting a security review by top police officials who discussed, among other things, the seventh such kidnapping in four days.

Inspector general of police Swayam Prakash Pani rushed to south Kashmir, hours after Suhail Ahmad Ganaie was abducted from his home on the outskirts of Shopian where two militants were killed in an encounter in a separate incident on the same day. A police spokesperson said the meeting chaired by Pani discussed the overall security situation, including measures taken ahead of the upcoming panchayat elections in the district.

On Thursday night, suspected Hizbul Mujahideen militants shot dead Nadeem Manzoor Dar, 18, alleging that he was an army informer. And on Saturday, unidentified assailants slit the throat of a 19-year-old baker, Huzaif Ashraf. In a first, militants also filmed their killings and released the videos. “We are looking into these cases. Culprits will be taken to task and peace will be ensured,” said Pani. A senior police official said militants were “insecure” following intensified operations by forces in Shopian this year. “We have killed 34 terrorists so far in these 11 months,” said the official who did not want to be named. The abductions came in the wake of the killings of two militants, including an army deserter, in a gunfight with security forces in Shopian’s Safanagri Zanpora about two weeks ago.

A purported confession video of Dar — apparently shot before his killing — shows the youngster admitting to tipping security personnel off the presence of militants in Zanpora.

A voice, apparently that of Hizb commander Riyaz Naikoo, justifies Dar’s killing and says people involved in “treachery” will meet the same fate.

Dar’s brother said, “Around 9pm [on Thursday], three to four armed men came to the house looking for him. They left as he was not at home. Later at night we came to know that Manzoor was abducted and killed....”

Both Omar Abdullah of the National Conference and Mehbooba Mufti of the Peoples Democratic Party have condemned the killings of civilians.

Srinagar-based political scientist Noor Ahmad Baba said such acts will not deter the potential informers. “In the period between 2002 and 2010, militancy had come down as there was some hope, but that hope has disappeared now,” he said.

This is the second time in 2018 that militants have taken civilians hostage. In August, there were mass abductions of relatives of securitymen after police detained for questioning family members of some Hizb militants, including those of Naikoo. Those abducted were released after police let off the relatives.

South Kashmir has emerged as the hotbed of militancy in the restive state; many fresh militant recruits are believed to be from this area. Stone-throwing mobs in the region often target securitymen during gunfights with militants, triggering retaliation by the forces. On the other hand, villagers suspected to be police and army informers face the wrath of militants.