Soldiers move towards the site of suicide bomb attack in Pulwama | PTI
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New Delhi: Four days after the worst attack on security forces in Jammu and Kashmir in Pulwama, top Jaish-e-Mohammed commander and IED expert Kamran was shot dead Monday in a fierce gun battle in the same district.

Four Army personnel, including a major, were also killed in the encounter.

Top security sources told ThePrint that Kamran and another terrorist was shot dead by soldiers from 55 Rashtriya Rifles of the Army along with Special Operations Group of the Jammu and Kashmir Police and personnel from 182 and 183 Battalion of the CRPF.

While Kamran, an Afghan war veteran, is suspected to have masterminded the Pulwama attack, sources repeated that it’s quite possible he is not the person who put the IED together.

Earlier, a source had said, “The explosives used in the attack were loosely packed and this is a mistake that Kamran would not have made. While the exact quantity of explosives used is yet to be determined, it is easily around 100 kg if not more.”

Sources had also said that only two people in Kashmir were capable of masterminding the IED attack Thursday. While one was Kamran, the sources refused to identify the other saying efforts were on to nab him.

But Kamran was a person of interest in the case and the forces had launched a massive hunt for him.

CASO in Pulwama

Based on very specific intelligence, a Cordon and Search Operation (CASO) was launched late Sunday night. As the cordon was being laid, the terrorists opened fire at the Quick Reaction Team headed by an Army major.

Despite being injured, the soldiers fired back, sources said, adding that the four Army personnel were killed in this exchange of fire.

Another soldier who was injured was evacuated and is now stable.

Monday’s CASO was launched following multiple raids that were carried out by the security forces in south Kashmir after the attack Thursday. Based on interrogation, an input was received about a group of JeM terrorists linked to the deadly attack that killed 40 CRPF personnel.

The IED expert

Kamran was believed to have infiltrated into India in December, and operated from Pulwama, Awantipora and Tral area of South Kashmir.

He had entered Kashmir along with two other terrorists, ThePrint had reported on 3 January.

The intelligence input at the time had identified him as Abdul Rasheed Ghazi, but information later suggested that the Afghan war veteran was known locally as Kamran.

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