Mohammad Ashraf Khan alias Ashraf Moulvi, Hizbul Mujahideen commander and one of the longest surviving militants in Kashmir, and his two associates were killed in a four-hour encounter in the Batkoot forests, 15 km short of tourist spot Pahalgam, said Inspector General of Police Kashmir Vijay Kumar.
The other two militants will be identified shortly, police said.
Khan had joined Hizbul Mujahideen in 2013 and ascended the ladder after the killing of many top militants, including Burhan Wani. In 2020, following the killing of then HM chief Dr Saifullah, Khan, Zubair Wani and Farooq Ahmad Bhat alias Nalli were supposed to replace him.
However, the Hizbul did not name its operations chief for Kashmir, keeping the security forces guessing.
Bhat hails from Yaripora village of Kulgam district, while Zubair Wani from Dehruna, Kokernag. Bhat joined the group in 2015 and is one of the most experienced militants in Kashmir. He comes from a rich and educated family that is associated with apple trade.
Before joining militancy, Zubair Wani was a research scholar in sociology. He joined militancy in 2018 and comes from a poor background, police sources say. His father is a laborer and he has three sisters and a younger brother.
Khan was experienced in handling organizational structure and building an overground network. His killing would come as a big setback to the oufit, a police officer told News 18.
Khan, police said, was a wanted militant in the Valley and is on the list of top 10 across all outfits. Only a few weeks ago, the police and Army killed Mohammad Yusuf Kantroo, a top Lashkar militant, in an encounter in North Kashmir.
Police said like Kantroo, Khan was instrumental in recruiting locals into the outfit. Before joining militants, Khan led stone-pelting protests, police added.
Earlier, a joint team of police and army launched a cordon and search operation in the Batkoot forests. The troops were fired at and their response triggered an encounter.
Searches are going on in the area for weapons and ammunition.
On Thursday, a Hizbul militant active since 2017 was arrested during a cordon and search operation in Kokernag area of Anantnag.
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