“Three terrorists of the terrorist organization The Resistance Front (TRF), including terrorist Lateef Rather, are trapped in the ongoing encounter,” officials told News24.
The TRF is an offshoot of the Pakistan-backed terrorist group Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT).
Officials said Lateef was involved in several civilian killings, including that of Kashmiri Hindus Rahul Bhat and Amreen Bhat, who were killed in Budgam a few months ago.
Earlier, a joint team of security forces cordoned off the entire waterfront area after specific observations were made regarding the presence of terrorists. As the security forces approached the suspected location, the hiding terrorist opened fire on the forces.
Security forces have evacuated civilians living in the vicinity of the shooting, and an operation against the terrorists is underway.
