Fayaz Bukhari
Srinagar, Sept 20: Police today claimed to have achieved a major breakthrough by arresting two persons for providing logistic support to Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) militants, who had carried out an attack on an Army convoy on the eve of Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh’s visit to the Kashmir Valley in June this year.
The attack had left eight soldiers dead and 16 others injured on Srinagar Bypass at Hyderpora when the security was on high alert on the eve of Prime Minister’s visit.
Inspector General of Police, Kashmir range, A G Mir told a news conference here this evening that police arrested Naveed-ul-Islam of Mouchwa and Bilal Ahmad Lone of Channapora for criminal conspiracy and providing logistic support to LeT militants who carried out the attack on June 24 at Hyderpora Bypass in Srinagar.
The IGP sad that two militants who carried out the attack on the Army convoy were Irshad Ahmad Ganai alias Abu Abdullah, a resident of Awantipora, and his Pakistani associate Abu Hamza alias Zeeshan.
Mir said that the attack was masterminded by Divisional Commander of LeT, Mohammad Qasim, on the directions of outfit’s Pakistan-occupied Kashmir based commanders Hanzullah Adnan and Ahmad Bhai.
The IGP said that a group of 10 LeT militants had come from North Kashmir’s Sopore area to South Kashmir, which included the militants who carried out the attack on the Army convoy in Srinagar, a day ahead of Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh’s arrival.
“The militants were taken to the spot in a car owned by Lone who along with Islam accompanied the two militants,” said Mir. He said investigations revealed that there are other people who provided logistic support to the attackers.
The IGP said that all those who have provided the logistic support have been identified and police is after them and will get them soon. “Efforts are also on to track down the militants who carried out the attack”, he added.
The attack on Army was one of the deadliest attacks in Srinagar in recent years and police in July this year announced rewards for providing information about the LeT militants who carried out the attack.
Police had circulated posters in Srinagar city with pictures of Divisional Commander Mohammad Qasim, top commander Sajjad Ahmad Bhat and Irshad Ahmad Gania who they thought were behind the attack on Army convoy.
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