J&K: Militant Escapes After Brief Shootout Inside Srinagar Hospital

A brief encounter between security forces and militants took place at the Sheri Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences at Bemina in Srinagar Friday afternoon. The militants, however, managed to escape.

"There was a brief firefight between terrorists and security forces at SKIMS Hospital, Bemina. Terrorists managed to escape taking advantage of civilian presence," a police spokesman said.

According to sources, gunshots were heard inside the hospital premises following which security forces cordoned off the entire area.

The police sources say there were inputs about the presence of a militant in the hospital and the team was deputed in the premises to take on him. They said the militant managed to escape after a brief firefight.

The shootout comes amid heightened tensions in the valley following a spate of terror killings of civilians and migrants, causing panic among the migrant population in the union territory.

The incident also comes on the heels of a counter-insurgency operation by the security forces in the valley that reportedly lasted for over a fortnight. Earlier in November, the authorities reopened the Jammu-Rajouri, Rajouri-Poonch national highway for traffic after its closure for over 17 days due to a counter-insurgency operation in Bhatta Durian, the densely forested belt in the Poonch area.

The road had been closed on October 15, a day after a fierce encounter in Bhatta Durrian in which four Army soldiers including JCO were killed. The operation in the Surankote area started on October 11 after an encounter between militants and the army in which five Army personnel were killed. The operation was extended to the Mendhar area subsequently.