In neighbouring Awanti-pora area, four civilians were injured, one of them critically, in a grenade attack. (Representational image)

Srinagar: An Army jawan was killed in a brief gunfight with militants in Jammu and Kashmir’s frontier district of Kupwara on Friday. Two persons, including a woman, were killed elsewhere in the Valley during the day, the police said.

The Army said that a clash took place in the village of Kachlu at Kralgund in Kupwara’s Handwara belt when its 32 Rashtriya Rifles launched a cordon-and-search operation to flush out the hiding militants dead or alive.

The deceased soldier has been identified as Rifleman Ram Babu Shahi (24). “He sustained a bullet injury during the gun battle. He was provided immediate first aid and evacuated to Srinagar’s 92-Base Hospital. But he, unfortunately, succumbed to his injuries,” defence spokesman Colonel Rajesh Kalia said.

Shahi was a resident of Jagatpur village of Nepal’s Chitwan district and is survived by his wife and a daughter. After a wreath-laying ceremony was held at the 15 Corps headquarters here, his mortal remains were flown for last rites to Varanasi.

Meanwhile, gunmen shot dead a 38-year-old woman in southern Pulwama district’s Drabgam village on Friday afternoon. The police blamed the incident on separatist militants and said that the victim Shameema (38), the wife of one Ali Muhammad Bhat, was targeted by them near the home of her parents. The couple lived in Pulwama’s Koil village.

The police said that Shameema was rushed to the hospital but she died on the way. In neighbouring Awanti-pora area, four civilians were injured, one of them critically, in a grenade attack.  

The seriously injured person identified as Abdul Ahad Pinchoo, a resident of Pulwama’s Jawbhra village, succumbed to his injuries later. The police said that the militants hurled a grenade towards the office of superintendent of police, Awantipora, resulting in injuries to civilians.

In a separate incident, clashes broke out between surging crowds and the security forces at Hajin of northern Bandipore district after the latter launched a search operation for militants reportedly hiding in the area.