A Hizbul Mujahideen module, responsible for causing car and hand grenade blasts in the Valley was jointly busted by the Jammu and Kashmir police and Central Reserve Police Force.
Addressing media persons, the Director General of State Police Gopal Sharma and Inspector General of CRPF A P Maheswari said working on leads provided by the militants arrested earlier, police and CRPF arrested six more militants of Hizbul Mujahideen, including a self styled divisional commander, district commander and finance incharge and expert in car blasts.
Sharma and Mahewari said after the arrest of Mohammad Amin Khan, an expert in preparing and planting Improvised Explosive Devices in a car in June, police and CRPF got some more vital clues about the activities of other militants.
They said accordingly a series of raids were conducted at different places during which some top HM militants were arrested.
Those arrested included Manzoor Ahmad Wani alias Younis alias Gul, a self styled divisional commander for central Kashmir, Yaseen Itoo alias Manzoor, self styled district commander for Badgam and Srinagar, Nissar alias Khaliad alias Omar, incharge finances and car blast expert, Ayaz alias Bilal alias Manzoor alias Ghulam Mohammad, who was functioning as provincial coordinator for all purses, Bilal Ahmad Dar alias Umar and Sajjad Ali Bhat alias Shahid.
They said further investigation in the case led the security fores to a hideout in Pampore area on the Srinagar-Jammu national highway on Tuesday morning.
However, when security forces were sealing the area, there was an encounter in which a Pakistani militant Sohail Afzal alias Ahmed Ali alias Ali Punjabi of Shekhpura, Gujarat was killed.
One AK rifle, two magazines, two grenades and 60 rounds of ammunition were recovered from the slain militant.
Sharma and Maheshwari said members of the HM module were responsible for killing 12 people in Srinagar and Badgam district.
They were also responsible for grenade attacks at main exhibition ground, SMHS hospital, Shiraz Cinema and Chadoora.
The militants also confessed to have triggered a motorcycle IED in June 2006, on the highway.
They said the arms and ammunition recovered during these raids included two AK rifles, 4 magazines, 300 rounds of ammunition, two pistols, two rockets, 14 detonators, 30 kg RDX, five rifle grenades and three hand grenades.