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Reverted edits by Mohammad Muneeb Rather (talk) to last version by 2600:1700:F930:6C50:4DE7:CEA6:ADF4:C799

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{{short description|Hizbul Mujahideen Militant group commander}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2020}}
{{Infobox military person
| image =
| birth_date = April 1985
| death_date = {{death date and age|df=yes|2020|05|06|1985|04}}
| birth_place = Beighpora, [[Jammu and Kashmir (state)|Jammu and Kashmir]], India
| death_place = Beighpora, [[Jammu and Kashmir (union territory)|Jammu and Kashmir]], India
| placeofburial = [[Sonamarg]]
| allegiance = [[Hizbul Mujahideen]] (2012–2020)
| death_cause = [[Encounter]]
| serviceyears = 2010–2020
| predecessor1 = Saifullah Mir (Killed)
| successor2 = Gazi Haider
| rank = [[Commander]]
| battles = [[Kashmir conflict]]
* [[Insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir]]
| serviceyears_label = Activity years
}}
'''Riyaz Ahmad Naikoo''' (also known as '''Mohammad bin Qasim''' or '''Zubair ul Islam''',<ref name=":5">{{Cite web|last=Gupta|first=Sihir|date=2020-05-06|title=Top Hizbul terrorist Riyaz Naikoo was hiding in south Kashmir bunker; killed in overnight op|url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/riaz-naikoo-aka-bin-qasim-kashmir-s-hizbul-chief-shot-dead-in-overnight-op/story-aLbwShbIpilgSr3gCdjbHO.html|access-date=2020-06-26|website=Hindustan Times|language=en}}</ref> April 1985{{spnd}}6 May 2020) was a commander in the militant group [[Hizbul Mujahideen|Hizb-ul-Mujahideen]] and one of the top ten most wanted [[Militant|militants]] in [[Jammu and Kashmir (union territory)|Jammu and Kashmir]], India.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-05-09|title=Who was Riyaz Ahmad Naikoo, the Hizbul Mujahideen commander?|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/who-was-riyaz-ahmad-naikoo-hizbul-mujahideen-6396915/|access-date=2020-08-14|website=The Indian Express|language=en}}</ref> He was killed in an encounter with Indian security forces on 6 May 2020.<ref>{{Citation|title=English, Commander Reginald Wastell, (12 April 1894–20 Aug. 1980), Royal Navy|date=2007-12-01|work=Who Was Who|publisher=Oxford University Press|doi=10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.u154249}}</ref>

== Life ==
Naikoo was born in Beighpora, a village in [[Awantipora]] [[tehsil]], [[Pulwama district]], in April 1985.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=Riyaz Naikoo — dreaded militant who 'looted farmers and brought new ruthlessness to Hizbul'|url=https://theprint.in/india/riyaz-naikoo-a-maths-graduate-who-looted-farmers-and-brought-new-ruthlessness-to-hizbul/415831/|last=Javaid|first=Azaan|date=6 May 2020|website=ThePrint|language=en-US|access-date=7 May 2020}}</ref> Some of his relatives have said that he had a passion for [[painting]], especially roses, during his school and college days.<ref>Ahmed Ali Fayyaz (7 May 2020), [https://www.thequint.com/voices/opinion/riyaz-naikoo-killed-jammu-kashmir-terrorism-militancy-hizbul-poster-boys-pakistan "With Riyaz Naikoo's Death, Has Era of Militant Poster Boys Ended?"], ''[[The Quint]]''. Retrieved 13 May 2020.</ref> After earning a degree in mathematics he became a math teacher at a nearby school.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Math Teacher To Hizbul's Longest-Serving Chief: Who was Riyaz Naikoo?|url=https://hwnews.in/news/national-news/math-teacher-to-hizbuls-longest-serving-chief-who-was-riyaz-naikoo/135918|date=7 May 2020|website=HW English|language=en-US|access-date=7 May 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|date=6 May 2020|title=Top rebel commander killed by Indian forces in Kashmir|language=en|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/may/06/top-rebel-commander-killed-by-indian-forces-in-kashmir|access-date=7 May 2020}}</ref> He gave free tuition to children from economically weaker backgrounds.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Riyaz Naikoo — dreaded militant who 'looted farmers and brought new ruthlessness to Hizbul'|url=https://theprint.in/india/riyaz-naikoo-a-maths-graduate-who-looted-farmers-and-brought-new-ruthlessness-to-hizbul/415831/|last=Javaid|first=Azaan|date=6 May 2020|website=ThePrint|language=en-US|access-date=23 May 2020}}</ref>

During the [[2010 Kashmir unrest|2010 unrest]], he was put under [[Detention (imprisonment)|detention]] by the security forces. On 1 June 2012 he disappeared and resurfaced with a gun. In the next five years he lived the life of a militant and rose to become the [[Hizbul Mujahideen|Hizb-ul-Mujahideen]] commander ([[de facto]] chief) in Jammu and Kashmir after the death of [[Burhan Wani]] and the defection of [[Zakir Musa]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|title=Who was Riyaz Ahmad Naikoo, the Hizbul Mujahideen commander?|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/who-was-riyaz-ahmad-naikoo-hizbul-mujahideen-6396915/|last=Masood|first=Bashaarat|date=7 May 2020|website=The Indian Express|language=en-US|access-date=7 May 2020}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite web|title=Valley's most wanted militant Riyaz Naikoo killed in Awantipora encounter|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/india/jammu-kashmir-militant-riyaz-naikoo-killed-awantipora-encounter-6397625/|last1=Masood|first1=Bashaarat|last2=Iqbal|first2=Naveed|date=7 May 2020|newspaper=[[The Indian Express]]|language=en-US|access-date=7 May 2020|last3=Adil|first3=Akhzer}}</ref><ref name=":4">{{Cite web|title=Riyaz Naikoo setback upsets Syed Salahuddin, says the spark will spread in region|url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/riyaz-naikoo-setback-upsets-syed-salahuddin-says-the-spark-will-spread-in-region/story-TfBIKLGprQk6uTmYhwOldM.html|last=Gupta|first=Shishir|date=7 May 2020|newspaper=[[Hindustan Times]]|language=en|access-date=8 May 2020}}</ref>

In March 2014, he was involved in killing of a Sarpanch's father Haji Ghulam Mohd Dar in Dogripora. He was also wanted for killing and abduction of police officers, murder, firing on a police bus and requirement in other crimes.<ref name=":5" /> <ref name=":6" />

In 2018, police detained Naikoo's 70-year-old father. In retaliation, family members of police were kidnapped by militants from across south Kashmir. His father was soon released and the 11 hostages were accordingly let go by Naikoo.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite web|title=Police releases father of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Riyaz Naikoo after detaining him for 2 days|url=https://www.firstpost.com/india/police-releases-father-of-hizbul-mujahideen-commander-riyaz-naikoo-after-detaining-him-for-2-days-5088671.html|date=31 August 2018|website=Firstpost|access-date=7 May 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Kashmir: Head of key militant group killed in gunfight|url=https://www.aa.com.tr/en/asia-pacific/kashmir-head-of-key-militant-group-killed-in-gunfight/1830989|last=Mir|first=Hilal|date=6 May 2020|website=[[Anadolu Agency]]|access-date=7 May 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Math Teacher To Hizbul's Longest-Serving Chief: Who was Riyaz Naikoo?|url=https://hwnews.in/news/national-news/math-teacher-to-hizbuls-longest-serving-chief-who-was-riyaz-naikoo/135918|last=Chaturvedi|first=Maneesha|date=7 May 2020|website=HW English|language=en-US|access-date=7 May 2020}}</ref> Jammu and Kashmir Police had alleged that he would "loot orchard owners".<ref name=":0" /> Naikoo started the practice of offering [[gun salute]]s to militants killed in encounters and posting them on social media. He was responsible for recruiting "scores of young Kashmiris in an armed quest for independence from India".<ref name=":6">{{Cite news|last1=Yasir|first1=Sameer|last2=Schultz|first2=Kai|last3=Kirmani|first3=Iqbal|date=6 May 2020|title=Top Kashmiri Militant Is Killed, Sparking Protests and Rage|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/06/world/asia/india-pakistan-kashmir-riyaz-ahmad-naikoo.html|access-date=7 May 2020|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Police say he rarely used mobiles, used a VPN when he had to, and was known to have used the Bat Messenger app to communicate. Naikoo's videos were circulated on the social media; one such video after the [[revocation of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir]] showed him saying that the revocation was "irrelevant to us" and the fight would continue.<ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite web|title=From math teacher to militant: Riyaz Naikoo said Art 370 abrogation was irrelevant|url=https://www.deccanchronicle.com/nation/current-affairs/070520/from-math-teacher-to-militant-riyaz-naikoo-said-art-370-abrogation-wa.html|last=Jameel|first=Yusuf|date=7 May 2020|website=Deccan Chronicle|language=en|access-date=7 May 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Riyaz Naikoo: Maths teacher who became a dreaded terror overlord|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/maths-teacher-who-became-a-dreaded-terror-overlord/articleshow/75589164.cms|last1=Jain|first1=Bharti|last2=Pandit|first2=M. Saleem|date=7 May 2020|website=The Times of India|language=en|access-date=7 May 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Betrayed by own, Riyaz Bhai is still fighting: Conversation of terrorists during Kashmir encounter|url=https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/conversation-of-terrorist-during-riyaz-naikoo-encounter-intercepted-1675252-2020-05-07|last=Bhalla|first=Abhishek|date=7 May 2020|newspaper=[[India Today]]|language=en|access-date=7 May 2020}}</ref>
Naikoo carried a bounty of Rs 12 lakh on his head.

Naikoo's last audio message in April was related to the [[COVID-19 pandemic]] where he requested people to follow medical advice to keep themselves protected.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|title=Hizbul Mujahideen's Riyaz Naikoo, one of Kashmir's longest surviving militants, killed in Pulwama|url=https://scroll.in/latest/961207/hizbul-mujahideens-riyaz-naikoo-one-of-the-longest-surviving-militants-killed-in-pulwama|last=Zargar|first=Safwat|website=Scroll.in|language=en-US|access-date=7 May 2020}}</ref>

== Death ==
Naikoo was killed in an encounter with [[Rashtriya Rifles|21 Rashtriya Rifles]] and [[Jammu and Kashmir Police]] on 6 May 2020 in Beighpora.<ref name=":2" /> <ref name=":5" />He was with an associate, who was also killed.<ref name=":2" /> The encounter was viewed as a big victory for the security forces.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Indian troops kill top Kashmir rebel commander Riyaz Naikoo|url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/05/indian-troops-kill-top-kashmir-rebel-commander-riyaz-naikoo-200506111447252.html|publisher=www.aljazeera.com |newspaper=[[Al Jazeera]]|access-date=7 May 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Hizbul Mujahideen 'Operational Chief' Riyaz Naikoo Killed by Security Forces: Who Was He?|url=https://thewire.in/security/hizbul-mujahideen-chief-riyaz-naikoo-killed|last=Ahmad|first=Mudasir|date=6 May 2020|website=The Wire|access-date=7 May 2020}}</ref><ref name=":7">{{Cite web|title=Police Got To Most Wanted Terrorist Through The Man Who Got Him His Food|url=https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/how-security-forces-got-hizbul-chief-riyaz-naikoo-top-cop-reveals-details-2224957|last1=Masoodi|first1=Nazir|last2=Som|first2=Vishnu|editor-last=Ghosh|editor-first=Deepshikha|website=NDTV|access-date=8 May 2020}}</ref><ref name=":5" /> Naikoo had been among the top 10 on the most-wanted list in Kashmir.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Riyaz Naikoo, Kashmir's most wanted terrorist, carries Rs 12 lakh reward|url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/riyaz-naikoo-kashmir-s-most-wanted-terrorist-carries-rs-12-lakh-reward/story-QEM18LWyY1AjsPXnqGqD4H.html|date=6 May 2020|website=Hindustan Times|language=en|access-date=7 May 2020}}</ref> As per policy, Naikoo's body was not handed back to his family.<ref>{{Cite news|date=6 May 2020|title=Indian forces kill top Kashmir militant|language=en-GB|publisher=[[BBC News]]|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-52556835|access-date=7 May 2020}}</ref> He was one of Kashmir's longest surviving militants (May 2012 to May 2020 or for 8 years).<ref name=":3" />

As a precautionary measure to curb the spread of news, government authorities information imposed communications and information blackouts by barring internet and mobile services across [[Kashmir valley]] right after Naikoo's encounter.<ref>{{Cite news|date=6 May 2020|title=Mobile Internet suspended in Kashmir|newspaper=The Hindu|agency=PTI|url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/mobile-internet-suspended-in-kashmir-as-top-hizb-commander-riaz-naikoo-trapped-in-encounter/article31515428.ece|access-date=8 May 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Shutting down phones, internet affects Covid fight|url=https://www.greaterkashmir.com/news/front-page-2/shutting-down-phones-internet-affects-covid-fight/|last=Malik|first=Saqib|date=6 May 2020|newspaper=[[Greater Kashmir]]|access-date=8 May 2020}}</ref><ref name="economic">{{Cite web|title=Riyaz Naikoo encounter: Mobile internet services snapped in Kashmir Valley|url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/defence/riyaz-naikoo-encounter-mobile-internet-services-snapped-in-kashmir-valley/videoshow/75574881.cms|date=6 May 2020|website=Times Now|via=economictimes.indiatimes.com}}</ref> Protests against the killing of Naikoo were the first since August 2019, when the revocation of Kashmir's special status took place, with at least one protester dying and 50 seriously injured with bullet wounds to the chest and some with pellet injuries in one or both eyes.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Civilian killed in police firing as protests flare up in Riyaz Naikoo's village|url=https://www.deccanchronicle.com/nation/current-affairs/070520/civilian-killed-in-police-firing-as-protests-flare-up-in-riyaz-naikoo.html|last=Jameel|first=Yusuf|date=7 May 2020|newspaper=[[Deccan Chronicle]]|language=en|access-date=8 May 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Kashmir clashes continue for third day over killing of top rebel|url=https://www.aljazeera.com/amp/news/2020/05/kashmir-clashes-continue-day-killing-top-rebel-200508184127273.html|publisher=www.aljazeera.com|newspaper=Al Jazeera|access-date=23 May 2020}}</ref> [[Sayeed Salahudeen|Syed Salahuddin]], the head of [[Hizbul Mujahideen|Hizb-ul-Mujahideen]], who is designated as a terrorist by India and the United States, said that "the sacrifice would help them achieve the mission that they had set out to achieve".<ref name=":4" /> On 10 May 2020 Saifullah, also known as Gazi Haider, replaced Riyaz Naikoo as the new operations commander.<ref name="newchief">{{Cite web|title=Hizbul Mujahideen appoints new terror commander in Kashmir|url=https://www.outlookindia.com/newsscroll/hizbul-mujahideen-appoints-new-terror-commander-in-kashmir/1830208|last=IANS|date=10 May 2020|newspaper=[[Outlook India]]|access-date=11 May 2020}}</ref>

== See also ==
* [[Insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir]]
* [[Hamid Gada]]
* [[Zakir Musa]]

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== Further reading ==
* TOI Editorials blog (7 May 2020) [https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/blogs/toi-editorials/big-strike-for-forces-but-aim-to-prevent-more-riyaz-naikoos-from-rising/ Big strike for forces. But aim to prevent more Riyaz Naikoos from rising]. ''[[The Times of India]]''.
* Shishir Gupta (10 May 2020) [https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/at-big-kashmir-meet-to-blunt-pak-s-terror-offensive-ajit-doval-also-has-some-advice/story-mCJyQAHHOgGBWXQy6YzcOM.html Ajit Doval showers praise on Kashmir forces for Riyaz Naikoo Op, then stern advice]. ''[[Hindustan Times]]''.
* Anurag Sharma (15 May 2020) [https://www.vifindia.org/article/2020/may/15/kashmir-another-one-bites-the-dust-hm-commander-naikoo-eliminated Kashmir: Another one Bites the Dust—HM Commander Naikoo Eliminated]. VIF. [https://web.archive.org/web/20200521025058/https://www.vifindia.org/article/2020/may/15/kashmir-another-one-bites-the-dust-hm-commander-naikoo-eliminated Archived] from the original on 21 May 2020.

{{Jammu and Kashmir freedom movement}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Naikoo, Riyaz}}
[[Category:1985 births]]
[[Category:2020 deaths]]
[[Category:Kashmiri people]]
[[Category:Terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir]]
[[Category:Kashmir separatist movement]]
[[Category:Kashmiri militants]]
[[Category:Indian Muslims]]

Riyaz Naikoo - Revision history

Bot: robot: Create/update articles. If there is a mistake please report on my talk page.

imported>TheAafi: Reverted edits by Mohammad Muneeb Rather (talk) to last version by 2600:1700:F930:6C50:4DE7:CEA6:ADF4:C799