However, the attendance of devotees was thin as the people from adjoining localities only were not able to reach the grand mosque due to non-availability of public transport in view of the strike.
"It's an unfortunate incident. The BSF convoy was attacked on the national highway by terrorists who fired at it from the by-lanes near Bijbehara," Director General of Jammu and Kashmir Police K Rajendra said.
Two militants of Hizbul Mujaheedin outfit were killed in an encounter in north Kashmir's Baramulla district Saturday morning.
A fresh batch of 6,162 pilgrims, including 1,360 women and 222 Sadhus on Monday left the winter capital for the twin base camps of Baltal and Pahalgam in Kashmir, officials said.
The terrorists have been identified as local residents Ashiq Hussain, a rape accused who was released on bail from Kishtwar Central Jail three weeks ago, and Basharat Hussain.
Jammu and Kashmir is most impacted by terrorism in 2018, with 321 attacks, resulting in 123 deaths while Chhattisgarh suffered 138 attacks in 2018, resulting in 123 deaths, reports Ajai Shukla.
The terrorists were identified by the police as Azad Ahmad Malik of Arwani in Bijbehara, Unais Shafi of Takiya Maqbool Shah, Bijbehara, Basit Ishtiyaq of Pushwara Anantnag, Atif Najar of Waghama Bijbehara, Firdous Ahmad of Muchpuna Pulwama and Shahid Bashir of Kawni Awantipora.
The officials said the case was re-registered by the NIA recently and it has initiated investigations into it.
After initial 'zero infiltration' in the wake of renewed ceasefire agreement between India and Pakistan in February, fresh attempts are on to push terrorists from across the border where 250 to 300 terrorists are trained and waiting on the launch pads, Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police Dilbag Singh said on Tuesday.
In a major blow to the commander of the Hizb-ul-Mujahideen, Burhan Wani's close aide, Tariq Pandita, surrendered before security forces in south Kashmir on Saturday.
The neighbouring nation also declared slain Hizbul commander Burhan Wani as a martyr.
The Jammu and Kashmir police have arrested a BSNL employee for providing SIM cards on fake names to the militants in north Kashmir Sopore town.
Junaid Ashraf Khan 'Sehrai' whose father is chairman of the separatist conglomerate Tehrek-e-Hurriyat, was killed in the encounter.
Pro-Pakistan leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani's death has brought to an end a chapter of anti-India and separatist politics in Kashmir.
Authorities had imposed restrictions in parts of Kashmir as a precautionary measure to maintain law and order on the eve of the second death anniversary of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani, even as a strike called by separatists evoked mixed response in the Valley.
The situation in Kashmir remains fluid as protests continued in many localities over the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Muzaffar Wani.
The army had to had to aim at the crowd when jawans claimed to have been fired upon from the other side.
The success for security forces comes days after Inspector General of Police, Jammu, Mukesh Singh said that four cases of killings and weapon snatching in Kishtwar district have been solved with the arrest of three Hizbul Mujahideen activists.
Munna Lahori, a Pakistani national, was also responsible for a series of civilian killings in Kashmir, a police official said.
In the gun battle, one terrorist identified as Sadam Hussain Mir, a resident of Chatripora Shopian, belonging to Hizbul Mujahideen, was killed, the official said.
Officials said both the factions of the Hurriyat are likely to be banned under Section 3(1) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, or the UAPA, under which "if the Central Government is of opinion that any association is, or has become, an unlawful association, it may, by notification in the Official Gazette, declare such association to be unlawful."
The National Investigation Agency on Friday declared that three Hizbul Mujahideen terrorists hailing from Kishtwar district in Jammu and Kashmir were wanted in the Delhi high court blast case and announced a cash reward of Rs 10 lakh for any information on each of them that could lead to their arrest.
The Srinagar police chief said they have arrested three of the four Hizbul Mujaheedin militants, who they say were involved in the flyover blast in the city. According to the police, the militants were assigned to carry out the strike as they had failed to carry out attacks in the city before, adding that the attack was an act of desperation from the militant outfit.
Dr Sheikh Jalal, a leading cardiologist of Kashmir was seriously injured in a militant ambush that left his two police guards dead.
Glorification of Burhan Wani by Pak PM at the world forum is an act of self-incrimination, says M J Akbar.
Did the ISI choose the Rajasthan border to smuggle narcotics after striking deals with Indian smugglers, who would send the money to various terrorist groups in Kashmir?
The police identified the Hizbul commander as Suhail Afzal, the divisional commander of the Hizbul Mujajhideen, who topped the list of most wanted militants
The body of Sehrai, 77, was handed over to his family on Wednesday evening and taken in a police escort to Kupwara in north Kashmir, at least 350 km from Jammu, where he would be buried at his ancestral graveyard in accordance with the COVID-19 guidelines.
Two Hizbul Mujaheedin militants including a top commander were killed in an encounter in the Mahore area of Reasi district in Jammu region on Wednesday morning.
"Two Hizbul Mujahiden terrorists identified as Mustaq Ahmad alias Irfan and Shabir Ahmad alias Hamza were killed in this encounter. Mushtaq alias Irfan was active since 1999 and was functioning as a divisional commander of the outfit," the spokesman added.
An audio conversation accessed by CNN-News 18 between the slain Hizbul chief and the man responsible for the 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai reveals how the two forces wanted to combine and pose a united threat to India.
Saifullah, who had taken command of the outfit after the killing of Riyaz Naikoo in May this year, was one of the most wanted terrorists in the Kashmir Valley and involved in several attacks on the security forces, an official said.
Within hours of the incident, police arrested the accused and said he was tasked by terror outfit Hizbul Mujahideen to carry out the attack.
Two of the three youths killed in an encounter with security forces in the Parimpora area of Srinagar were 'radically inclined' and working as overground workers of the Lashkar-e-Tayiba (LeT) terror outfit, police said on Friday and added that the case was being investigated.
A gunbattle broke out between militants hiding in a house and security forces in Pulwama district of South Kashmir on Wednesday morning.
Bodies of three men, including that of an alleged militant, were found on Monday about 30 kms from here in Baramulla district, triggering protests by locals even though police said the deaths appeared to be a result of fight between two militant groups.
Thousands of misguided Kashmiri youth were receiving training in different militant training camps in Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK), says an arrested Hizbul Mujahideen militant.
The JeI (J&K) also has several trusts for running schools to disseminate orthodox Islamic education, has a youth wing and has numerous publications for spreading its fundamentalist ideology.
Because of these clashes, train services between Srinagar and Banihal were suspended by railway authorities for the day.
Two Hizbul Mujahideen militants were on Thursday gunned down in an encounter with security forces in Shopian district of Kashmir, the police said.
