March 24, 2003	Monday	Muharram 20, 1424

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SOPORE, March 23: Former chief commander of the Hizbul Mujahideen, Abdul Majid

Dar, was shot dead here on Sunday.

Mr Dar, 48, was gunned down at his brother’s house here, witnesses told AFP. They said the gunmen barged into the house of Fayaz Ahmed and opened automatic weapon fire, killing Mr Dar instantly.

His mother, Shah Begum, and sister, Rehana Akhter, were critically injured in the attack and rushed to Srinagar’s main hospital. “More than two men later fled in a waiting car after firing at Mr Dar and his relatives,” a witness said.

A spokesman for Mr Dar’s Hizbul Mujahideen alleged that the killing was the work of Indian intelligence agencies.

Two lesser-known groups, Save Kashmir Movement and Al Nasireen, claimed responsibility for the killing, local news agency Current News Service said.

“We have launched investigations into the killing,” a police officer said.—AFP