Former Police Officer Killed in Terrorist Attack at Baramulla Mosque, Jammu and Kashmir; Security Forces Intensify Search Operations

A former police officer was fatally shot in an attack by terrorists in the Baramulla district of Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday morning. According to the police, the incident occurred while the ex-senior superintendent of police, Mohammad Shafi, was at a mosque in Gantmulla Baramulla for morning prayers. Following the attack, the area was secured by the police.

The Kashmir Zone police, in a post on the social media platform X (previously known as Twitter), stated: “Terrorists fired upon Shri Mohd Shafi, a retired police officer at Gantmulla, Sheeri #Baramulla, during Azan in the mosque, leading to fatal injuries. The vicinity has been cordoned off. More details are pending.”

This event is part of a series of targeted killings in Jammu and Kashmir. Earlier in the month, a police constable, Mohammad Hafiz Chad, was injured in a terrorist shooting near his residence in Hamdaniya Colony Bemina, Srinagar. Prior to this, in October, police inspector Masroor Ahmad Wani was attacked outside his home in Eidgah while playing cricket. He was initially treated at Paras hospital in Srinagar and later transferred to AIIMS in the national capital, where he passed away due to his injuries.

Concurrently, a substantial search operation is in progress to locate terrorists in the Dera ki Gali forest area of the Rajouri sector. This follows an encounter on Thursday in which four Army soldiers lost their lives to terrorist activity.