Aakash Hassan
Srinagar
After the encounter at Hassanpora Arwani, 8 kms from highway in Bijbehara, entered the third day today morning, the gunfight ended with the recovery of two bodies from the site.
A police official said that they have recovered two bodies and their identities are being ascertained. “The search operation is still going on.”
At least five residential houses have been damaged and one of them has been razed to ground by explosives, reports said.
There was a brief lull in the firing from both sides, till dawn.
However, with dawn the firing intensified, locals informed.
A civilian, Arif Ahmad Shah, was killed in the forces’ action yesterday while the guns were blazing near the encounter site. Police said he was killed by a stray bullet.
Meanwhile, massive protests have erupted in southern parts of Kashmir after the gunfight ended.
Scores of civilian protesters have been injured in the clashes, reports said.
Reports said that clashes erupted in Arwani village after forces launched a combing operation today morning.
A protester has been hit by a bullet in his leg, reports quoting witnesses said.
They said that protests also erupted in Arwani, Bijbehara, Qaimoh and Khudwani areas after the gunfight ended.
Phone and Internet services, which were suspended by the authorities in view of the gunfight, continue to remain disrupted in the area.
