Srinagar, July 4 (IANS) Gunshots were heard on Saturday during a cordon and search operation (CASO) in Jammu and Kashmir’s Shopian district, police sources said.

Police sources said gunshots were heard during a CASO in the Saidpora area of south Kashmir’s Shopian district on Saturday evening.

Joint security forces had launched the operation in the area following intelligence inputs about the presence of terrorists there.

Sources said that after gunshots were heard in the cordoned-off area, reinforcements were rushed to seal the locality completely.

Search operations are continuing in the area, police sources said.

Although Shopian district, like the rest of the Valley, is largely peaceful and terrorism has, according to security agencies, been reduced to residual levels, the district has witnessed militant activity since the onset of armed violence in the 1990s. Its trajectory, however, changed significantly after 2008.

Situated in south Kashmir, the district became a major centre of home-grown militancy, targeted killings of minorities and security personnel, and high-intensity counter-terrorism operations.

Like much of the Kashmir Valley, Shopian witnessed a heavy presence of terrorist groups during the years of insurgency. The period resulted in the displacement of local Kashmiri Pandit populations and widespread violence.

In 2009, the district became the focal point of major civil unrest following the deaths of two local women.

The protests brought the Valley to a near standstill and led to heightened tensions between local residents and security forces.

After 2015, Shopian emerged as a key centre of local militancy, with young and educated residents joining groups such as Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Hizbul Mujahideen (HM).

The region witnessed attacks on politicians, security personnel and minority communities, including Kashmiri Pandits and migrant labourers, prompting several families to leave the area.

To dismantle terror networks in the district, security forces, including the Army, CRPF and J&K Police, intensified cordon and search operations, eliminating several commanders and disrupting militant infrastructure.

–IANS

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