The Army on Wednesday said a Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorist was killed in an encounter in the upper reaches of Central Kashmir.
The operation began late Tuesday night when security forces launched a joint search operation in the Korag area of Yousmarg in Central Kashmir. According to the Army, troops noticed suspicious movement during the operation and challenged those present.
The Army said the terrorists responded by opening fire, leading to an exchange of gunfire in which one terrorist was neutralised. The operation continued through the night.
During a search early Wednesday morning, security forces recovered the body of the slain terrorist along with war-like stores. The Army identified him as Mohammad Asif, alias Hashim Moosa, and said he was a Pakistan-based LeT terrorist.
Officials said Moosa was an associate of Yasir, another militant who was killed during an earlier security operation in the same forest area.
Group Linked to Several Attacks
According to officials, Yasir and Moosa were members of a militant group that had carried out several attacks in the region. The group was linked to attacks in the Jammu region, including the Dera Ki Gali ambush in Poonch, in which four soldiers were killed, as well as an attack on an Air Force convoy.
The two were also described as key associates of senior LeT commander Sulaiman Shah. Shah was killed along with two other terrorists during an operation in forests on the outskirts of Srinagar in July 2025.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah later told the Lok Sabha that the three militants killed in that operation were involved in the Pahalgam attack, in which 25 tourists and a local resident were killed.
Four-Member Group Eliminated
With Moosa's death, sources said the entire four-member militant group has now been eliminated. They identified Moosa as the group's commander. A photograph showing the four members of the group had earlier circulated widely on social media.
Apart from Yasir and Moosa, the other two militants were identified as Sulaiman Shah and Junaid Ahmed Bhat.
According to officials, Shah and Junaid were involved in the Ganderbal tunnel attack in October 2024. Yasir and Moosa were suspected of carrying out the Butapathri attack near Gulmarg in the same year, in which two soldiers and two civilian porters were killed.
Junaid was killed during a security operation in the Harwan area on the outskirts of Srinagar in December 2024.
The latest operation in Yousmarg marks the killing of another key member of the group that officials have linked to multiple attacks in Jammu and Kashmir.