By PTI

SRINAGAR: Two militants were killed in an encounter with security forces in Pulwama district of Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday, an official said.

He said the gun battle broke out between militants and security forces on the outskirts of Awantipora town in the morning following a tip-off about the presence of ultras in the area.

Two militants were killed in the encounter, the official said.



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"Two terrorists of the Lashkar-e-Taiba were eliminated in the operation. They have been identified as Ufaid Farooq Lone and Abbas Bhat," DIG south Kashmir Atul Kumar Goel said in a video posted on official Twitter account of the Kashmir Zone Police.

DIG South Kashmir Atul Kumar Goel on Kulgam encounter: 2 terrorists were neutralised. They have been identified as Zahid Mantoo of Shopian & Irfan Ahmad Bhat of Kulgam. Both belong to Hizbul Mujahideen. Huge quantity of arms, ammunition & explosives were recovered from the bodies pic.twitter.com/75wWhD6qzC — ANI (@ANI) May 22, 2019

"Both these were involved in heinous acts of terrorism as well as civilian atrocities," he said.

Goel said a large quantity of arms and ammunition was recovered at the encounter site.

Police said Lone was active since July 2018.

He was involved in several militancy-related incidents in the past over one year, they said.

He had been threatening shopkeepers against the opening of shops following the abrogation of special status to Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370, police said.