Youths from South Kashmir join militant camps post Burhan Wani's death
Officials suspect many may have joined terror groups.
Srinagar: A considerable number of Kashmiri youths, especially from South Kashmir, have been missing and are believed to have joined the ranks of militant groups after the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen militant Burhan Wani in July this year.
A conglomerate of four districts — Pulwama, Kulgam, Shopian and Anantnag, which has seen an uprising since Wani was killed in an encounter with security forces on July 8, is believed to have accounted for the disappearance of nearly 80 youths in past two months with majority from Pulwama district, sources in the know said.
According to the intercepts of militants groups and some sketchy intelligence inputs gathered from the ground in South Kashmir, youths were mainly moving towards Hizbul Mujahideen militant group with a few attracted to banned Lashker-e-Taiba, they said.
Meanwhile, “Our Id would be on the day Kashmir becomes free,” said Adnan, one of the dozens young Kashmiris lying in beds at the Ophthalmology ward of Srinagar’s Sri Maharaja Hari Singh Hospital (SMHS).
Adnan is threatened with partial or total loss of vision after pellets were lodged in his eyes during a recent clash between irate crowds and security forces. Kashmir Valley is on the boil since July 8 in the aftermath of the killing of Hizb-ul-Mujahedin militant commander Burhan Muzaffar Wani. As many as 80 civilians, mostly youth, have been killed and over 11,500 wounded in security forces actions in their tough campaign to contain unrest.
Two policemen also died and, as per the Home Ministry officials, over 5,500 security personnel have been injured in mob violence during the nine- week- old unrest.
Among the injured civilians are over 600 young Kashmiris who have been hit in their eyes in pellet gun firings and what is really going to haunt many of them for the rest of their lives is the loss of their eyesight.
On Sunday, the 65th day of unrest, more than 250 people were injured in fresh clashes at various parts of the Valley including Karimabad in southern Pulwama. The security forces swung bamboo sticks, fired teargas canisters and, of course, pellet guns to quell protesters and stone-pelting mobs, officials said.
There evidently will be no let up in the ongoing shutdowns and protests even during the coming Eid-ul-Zuha.
