After 22 hours of fierce gunbattle, the two militants who were holed up in Hotel Panjab in Srinagar's Lal Chowk have been killed. But as security forces searched the area, the hotel building has caught fire.
Both militants, a local and a Pakistani, are said to have belonged to the Lashkar-e-Taiba. Intelligence sources say, there is the possibility of a third body inside the hotel but it is not yet confirmed whether it is that of a terrorist or a civilian. The body is yet to be recovered.
In addition to the militants, two people, including a policeman, have been killed, and nine injured in the fidayeen (suicide) attack. The policeman, Mohammed Yusuf, who was posted as a driver with the Station House Officer of Maisuma Police station was killed as the militants began their attack on Wednesday. A civilian who was injured, died in hospital on Thursday. Nine people were injured, including Rauf, a cameraman with a Delhi-based private news channel.