NEW DELHI: Five militants including a top commander of The Resistance Front (TRF), Afaq Sikander were killed in two encounters with security forces at Pombay and Gopalpora area of Kulgam district in Jammu and Kashmir.

Inspector General of Police (Kashmir) Vijay Kumar said that following inputs about the presence of militants a joint cordon and search operation in the Gopalpora area with the security forces including Army and CRPF was launched.

During the operations, the militants fired upon a party of security forces and in the ensuing encounter, two militants were killed in Gopalpora including Sikander and another terrorist identified by police as Irfan Mushtaq Lone of Shopian.

While in the Pombay operation, which is about one kilometre away from Gopalpora the police said they gunned down two militants first and later one more militant was killed.

IGP Kumar tweeted about the operation and wrote, 'Terrorist Commander of proscribed #terror outfit TRF Afaq Sikander killed in #encounter.' He said the identity and group affiliation of the gunned down terrorists was being ascertained.

In the recent past, the police and security forces have been conducting a regular search operation to zero down on militants and have neutralised those holed up in the valley. Earlier last week, two Hizbul Mujahideen militants were killed in Kulgam.