Sabzar Bhat

Sabzar Ahmad Bhat was a commander of the Hizbul Mujahideen militant group. He was killed by police on May 26, 2017.

Early life
Bhat's home village is reported to have been in Rathsuna, Tral, Jammu and Kashmir. He only finished half of his schooling, dropping out after failing his Class X examinations, and previously worked in the orchards and fields of his father. He was involved in petty crime prior to joining Hizbul Mujahideen.

Hizbul Mujahideen
He reportedly joined Hizbul Mujahideen in April 2015, after stealing a rifle from a CRPF soldier in Tral. Bhat is reported to have been involved in attacks on panchayat members and security forces, as well as the execution of civilians he believed to be informants. In October 2015, he was arrested for transporting two Lashkar-e-Taiba militants involved in the 2015 Udhampur Terrorist Attack. In that case, he was indicted on January 29, 2016.

Bhat was an aide and close friend to the previous Hizbul Mujahideen commander, Burhan Wani, who was killed in July 2016. Indian security forces considered him effective at using social media to recruit youth towards militancy. Indian security forces previously located him in Rathsuna, in March 2017, but he was able to evade them after a 15-hour gunfight that left one policeman dead.

Death
Bhat was killed in a firefight with Indian security forces in Soimoh, Tral, approximately forty kilometers outside of Srinagar. He was subsequently buried in Pulwama. His death sparked clashes and a police-imposed curfew, during which a youth was killed in clashes with the Central Reserve Police Force. Internet and phone service across Kashmir was suspended in an attempt to calm the region.

A previously-unknown militant group, Mujahideen Taliban-e-Kashmir, claimed it had provided information on Bhat to security forces. The claim remains unverified, though some analysts suggested it reflected a growing schism between various militant groups in Kashmir, with members of Hizbul Mujahideen concerned that Zakir Musa may have betrayed Bhat.

Diplomatic protest
Pakistan's Adviser to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz claimed that the killing of Bhat was an extrajudicial execution, and called on the United Nations and the Organisation of Islamic Conference to investigate. The Provincial Assembly of the Punjab also unanimously passed a resolution condemning the killing of Bhat, and requested United Nations intervention in Kashmir.