The gunfights, which broke out on Saturday night, took place in Pulwama and Budgam districts of the Kashmir valley.
Sultanpur, a village in Maharashtra with a population of around 1,000 and 600 houses, will now be known as 'Rahul Nagar' as the local residents have changed its name in memory of its native, who laid down his life while fighting terrorists during the 26/11 Mumbai attacks in 2008.
Separatist leader Mohammad Yasin Malik on Tuesday pleaded guilty to all the charges, including those under the stringent Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), before a Delhi court in a case related to alleged terrorism and secessionist activities that disturbed the Kashmir valley in 2017, court sources said.
The Maharashtra Anti Terrorism Squad on Thursday arrested a man in Jammu and Kashmir for his alleged links with Junaid Mohammed, who is accused of recruiting terrorists for the banned outfit Lashkar-e-Tayiba, an official said.
A cop also lost his life in the encounter which took place at Najibhat crossing in Kreeri area in the north Kashmir district.
Jaishankar, who presided over the UNSC Briefing: Global Counterterrorism Approach: Challenges and Way Forward, described terrorism as an existential threat to international peace and security and said it knows no borders, nationality, or race.
The agency said these accused persons collected information regarding vital installations, deployment and movement of security forces, procured official secret documents and passed on the same to their LeT handlers through encrypted communication channels for monetary consideration.
China has blocked a proposal by the US and India at the United Nations to blacklist Abdul Rauf Azhar, the brother of Jaish-e Mohammed (JeM) chief Masood Azhar and the deputy chief of the Pakistan-based terror group, in the second such move by Beijing in less than two months.
The Kerala high court on Monday upheld the conviction and life sentence of 10 accused, including suspected Lashkar-e-Tayiba operative Tadiyantavide Naseer, by an NIA court in 2013 in a case regarding recruitment of youths from Kerala for terror camps in Jammu and Kashmir to 'wage war against India'.
The National Investigation Agency on Wednesday raided a dozen places in Jammu and Kashmir in connection with two cases, one related to the recovery of an IED and another about the recruitment of youth by the Lashkar-e-Tayiba terror outfit, an official said.
This is the second time that Rotawan, now 23 years old, has approached the court.
Code language is crucial for a terrorist operation's success. Investigations have revealed that the 26/11 killers communicated with each other using coded language.
An imminent concern for India is the fact that disenchanted al-Qaeda cadres may shift their allegiance to the Islamic State and its regional affiliate Islamic State -Khorasan Province.
Describing Central Asia as India's "extended neighbourhood", Doval said New Delhi accords "highest priority" to this region, adding Afghanistan is an important issue "concerning all of us".
'The surrendered terrorist in custody identified himself as Ali Babar Patra of Pakistan's Punjab. He has admitted he is a member of the LeT'
LeT commander among two militants killed in encounter in J-K's Pulwama
Shouting slogans against district administration, the protestors raised slogans like "we want justice".
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday denied claims that a Lashkar-e-Tayiba (LeT) terrorist nabbed in Reasi in Jammu and Kashmir was its member, even as the Congress and others attacked the saffron party and demanded a high-level probe.
The search operation turned into an encounter after the terrorists fired upon the security forces who retaliated, he said.
He said the objective of the prime accused Mohammed Shariq was to create a divide between communities.
Organisations and individuals that try to create sympathy for terrorists must also be isolated, he said addressing the third 'No Money for Terror Ministerial Conference on Counter-Terrorism Financing' hosted by the Ministry of Home Affairs.
He also said that terrorists are constantly finding new ways to carry out violence, radicalise youth and raise financial resources and the darknet is being used by terrorists to spread radical content and conceal their identities.
The encounter had started at Hadigam area of the south Kashmir district during the night, the police said.
A self-styled district commander of the Lashker-e-Tayiba was killed and a civilian wounded in a fierce gun-battle between ultras and security forces in Jammu and Kashmir's Shopian district on Saturday afternoon.
The National Investigation Agency on Wednesday sought the death penalty for convicted Kashmiri separatist leader Yasin Malik, who had earlier pleaded guilty of all charges, including those under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, in a terror funding case, court sources said.
Kumar said one of the slain men, who have been identified from the press ID card as Rayees Bhat, was a journalist before joining the militant ranks in 2021.
India was the sole abstention while all other 14 members of the Council voted in favour of the resolution that decided that processing or payment of funds, other financial assets, economic resources, and provision of goods and services necessary to ensure the timely delivery of humanitarian assistance are permitted and are not a violation of the asset freezes imposed by the Council or its Sanctions Committee.
A cordon-and-search operation was launched at Rakhama village in the district in the morning following information about the presence of militants in the area, a police spokesperson said.
Security forces launched a cordon and search operation after receiving specific intelligence about the presence of terrorists in Zainpora area of Shopian, they said.
"The fight against impunity is critical to the larger pursuit of securing peace and justice. The Security Council must send an unambiguous and unequivocal message on this count," External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar told the 15-nation UN Security Council briefing on Ukraine 'Fight against impunity'.
This was for the second time in the past six years that Hussain, who also worked for an intelligence unit of the Pakistani army, was arrested while trying to infiltrate into this side from across the border.
In a major breakthrough, security forces killed Jaish-e-Mohammed commander Vilayat Hussain Lone in an encounter in Jammu and Kashmir's Shopian district on Monday, taking the death toll of the ultras in the three-day operation to two.
In another incident, militants in Pulwama district shot at a man on Sunday night.
Speaking in the Security Council briefing on 'Threat to International Peace & Security Caused by Terrorist Acts' on Wednesday, Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador T S Tirumurti reiterated India's firm belief that terrorism in one part of the world is threat to peace and security of entire world.
'It was always anticipated that the return of the Taliban would embolden armed Islamists including anti-India groups like the Lashkar and Jaish.'
The UNSC meeting also focussed on the 15th report of the Secretary-General on the threat posed by ISIL (Da'esh) to international peace and security and the range of United Nations efforts in support of member states in countering the threat.
Lashkar-e-Tayiba terrorist Yousuf Kantroo, one of the longest surviving terrorists in the Kashmir Valley, was among three terrorists killed in Baramulla district on Thursday.
In a searing attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Union government, Sena leader and MP Sanjay Raut also said that in view of Kashmiri Pandits once again fleeing from the Valley, 'Kashmir Files 2' should be made to show who is responsible for their current plight.
The duo came under the scanner of the security forces during tracking of a local LeT terrorist, named Lateef Rather alias Osama, who was involved in terror incidents in Srinagar and Budgam in the last two months, the police spokesman said.
The two leaders reaffirmed that the United States and India 'will take concerted action against all terrorist groups, including groups proscribed by the UNSCR 1267 Sanctions Committee'.
