A four-year-old girl injured in a shell explosion inside her house at Malroo area succumbed to injuries today, taking the toll in the incident to three. Muskaan, who was critically injured in the explosion, succumbed to her injuries at SKIMS hospital at 6.00 am, officials said.
Two of her siblings were killed when the shell, left over during a fierce gun battle with militants in Malroo area, 12 kms from here, in October last year, exploded inside their house last night. The deceased were identified as Noor Mohammad(10) and Bismah (8), children of Mohammad Maqbool Bhat and Yasmeena.
According to preliminary investigation, the children had found the unexploded shell from the debris of a house that was razed during a gun battle with Jaish-e-Mohammad militants. They brought the shell home and were fiddling with it when the explosion took place, he said.
Eyewitnesses said the deceased were blown to pieces. Yasmeena and another daughter Mumtaza are battling for life at the hospital. The house owner escaped unhurt as he was smoking in the lawn of the house. Three militants were killed after security forces blasted two houses where they were believed to be hiding in Malroo in October.
The militants were part of a larger group assigned to carry out attacks on Army's 15 Corps headquarters at Badamibagh and another camp at Haft Chinar.