3 newly-recruited militants among J&K’s most wanted 10 ultras

The Jammu and Kashmir police have released a fresh list of 10 most wanted militants, which includes three new recruits, operating in the Valley.

The list, shared on Twitter by the Kashmir Zone Police on Monday night, also includes seven militants who have been active for some time.

“Top 10 #targets: #Old #terrorists- Salim Parray, Yousuf Kantroo, Abbas Sheikh, Reyaz Shetergund, Farooq Nali, Zubair Wani & Ashraf Molvi. #New #terrorists- Saqib Manzoor, Umer Mustaq Khandey & Wakeel Shah: IGP Kashmir @JmuKmrPolice,” the tweet reads.

Lashker-e-Taiba (LeT) commander Salim Parray of Hajin area in north Kashmir’s Bandipora district is on the top of the list. He had escaped from an encounter on November 12, 2019.

Yousuf Kantroo alias Isseh Kantur, whom the police files describe as Lashkar's “operational head, mastermind, planner and main recruiter from Budgam”, is at the second number on the most wanted list.

Abbas Sheikh, in his late 40s and one of the oldest surviving militants active in Kashmir, is at the third spot on the list. Sheikh, a recycled militant, was affiliated with Hizbul Mujahideen outfit before switching loyalties to newly-formed The Resistance Front (TRF), believed to be the frontal organisation of the LeT last year.

His sister Naseema Banoo was arrested by the police last year in June from south Kashmir’s Kulgam district under the stringent Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA). Several members of Sheikh’s family, including his two brothers and nephews have been killed in the past 25 years. They all had joined militancy at one point or the other.

The other four old militants on the list include Reyaz Shetergund, Farooq Nali, Zubair Wani and Ashraf Molvi. Except for Reyaz Shetergund, the other three had also featured in the top 10 list released by the police in June last year.

According to the police, Saqib Manzoor, Umer Mushatq Khandey and Wakeel Shah, who made it to the top ten list this time have recently joined the militant ranks.

Pertinently, this year so far, 90 militants have been killed in Jammu and Kashmir, a majority of whom were commanders of LeT, Jaish-e-Mohammad and the Hizbul. Among the slain militants, the majority (83) were locals while only seven were Pakistanis.