Fayaz Bukhari
SRINAGAR, Apr 30: Taking cue from Taliban, the indigenous militant outfit Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) and other outfits like Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) are posing major challenge for the security forces in Kashmir by not using cell phones or other traceable modes of communication that over the years proved fatal for militants operating in Kashmir.
Security forces have launched a massive operation against the Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) since the killing of 4 police men in Haigam area of Sopore in North Kashmir last week. “So far they have failed to track the militants as they don’t use cell phones or leave any technical evidence for security agencies to track them”, sources said.
Highly placed sources told Excelsior that security agencies feel that there are around 6 trained active militants of Hizbul Mujahideen headed by their top Commander, Qayoom Najar operating in Sopore area.
In search of the militants responsible for the killing of 4 cops, security forces conducted around a dozen operations in Sopore area so far but are clueless about these militant whereabouts.
Sources said that the HM and other militant organisations of late have shifted to Taliban style use of human couriers for communication rather than using cell phone and other communication system that led to their tracking by security agencies in the past.
Giving example of the HM militant, Javeed Matoo, sources said that he was critically injured in an encounter in the Sopore town market place last year but has not fallen to the hands of security forces so far. Sources said that Javed was first rescued from the Sopore market place and operated in a hospital. “It took him over six months to stand on his legs. Despite this, security forces failed to arrest him”, sources added.
Sources said that despite the major successes achieved by the security forces against Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) in Sopore recently by arresting its top most commander Fahadullah and his associates, the group still dominates the militancy scene in the area. They said there are around half a dozen foreigner militants of LeT operating in the area. “Since they don’t use mobile phones or other communication system, their tracking becomes difficult. But on ground there have been reports of their presence”, they added.
However, sources said that militants use Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP) that becomes difficult for security agencies to track. “The LeT top commander Fahadullah was using Skipe (not Skype) to communicate with his handler and LeT Commander Hazulla based in Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK).”
A top security official told Excelsior that despite the HM presence in North Kashmir security forces are unable to track them and have no deep knowledge about the group and their activities. He said that top LeT commander Fahadullah who was arrested this month had only superficial knowledge about his group which the security agencies were already aware of.
The security official said that of late security agencies have been banking more on technical evidence rather than the human intelligence. “Now technical evidence seems to be drying up and it is posing a big challenge for the security forces at a time when militants are desperate to make a comeback”, he added.
The official said that the HM of late has made deeper inroads in Kashmir valley because of being local militant outfit and support of locals it enjoys in parts of Sopore, Kupwara, Handwara, Pattan, Tral, Kulgam, Shopian and Pulwama. The official said that besides having sizable number of trained active militants, the group has larger Over Ground Worker (OGW) base.
Sources said that the HM has larger presence in Kashmir than LeT but the latter is more lethal and is bigger militant brand. “HM of late has over one dozen trained active militants in Tral that is cause of concern for security forces”, sources added.
In the meantime, Army said that a major tragedy was averted by the vigilant troops of 2 Rashtriya Rifles of Army when they detected and defused a powerful Improvised Explosive Device (IED) at Shalateng on Srinagar-Baramulla National Highway. Army said that IED with over 11 kilogrammes of explosives could have caused a serious threat to number of innocent people moving on the road as also the civil VIPs who were scheduled to move along the road.
Army said that based on the intelligence obtained by 2 RR Battalion about the likelihood of planting of IED by militants, an extensive search was launched by the unit during the road opening resulting in detection of the IED. The IED was placed in a pressure cooker wrapped in a rice bag and planted near a culvert close to the Shalateng Petrol Pump on the Highway.
Army said that to avert civilian causalities, the troops cordoned off the area, taking adequate security measures and neutralised the IED in the same place employing their expert bomb disposal squad.
Army said that IED could have caused fatal causality to the people travelling in the cavalcade of the VIP who were scheduled to move through the area. “It may be noted that this pattern of IED is similar to the one which was used in the Boston Marathon, USA IED attack”, Army said.
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