Hundreds of people clashed with security forces on Thursday in India’s Srinagar city, in Kashmir, after three rebels and a woman were killed in a gunfight.
Local police and Central Reserve Police Force surrounded the Batamaloo neighbourhood of Srinagar after midnight following a tip-off that rebels were hiding in a house, triggering an exchange of fire.
Three suspected rebels were killed in the gun battle that lasted several hours, police said.
#SrinagarEncounterUpdate: 02 more #unidentified #terrorists killed (total 03). Search going on. Further details shall follow. @JmuKmrPolice https://t.co/jM8sq21bFn
— Kashmir Zone Police (@KashmirPolice) September 17, 2020
“One young woman also died during the encounter. She was caught in the crossfire. Her death is unfortunate,” Director General of Police Dilbagh Singh told reporters.
“Forces fired when I did a U-Turn and volley of bullets hit my mother's head from behind,”—Aqib Riyaz Sofi, 25, whose mother was killed while he was driving to their bakery shop at 4 AM in #Batamaloo.#Kashmir
📸@HakeemIrfan #Kashmir— Aakash Hassan (@AakashHassan) September 17, 2020
A CRPF personnel was injured in gunfight.
As news of the deaths spread, hundreds of residents took to the streets, throwing stones at government forces who fired tear gas and metal pellets, according to thekashmirwalla.
Gunbattle with security forces are common in Kashmir, but rare in the state capital. The last such firefight killed three, destroyed 15 houses in June in the heart of Srinagar.