Srinagar, Mar 20 (IANS): Unidentified gunmen late Tuesday night killed an 18-year-old boy in north Kashmir's Sopore town, police said here.

Sopore Superintendent of Police Syed Imtiyaz Hussain told IANS Wednesday: "Suhail Ahmad Sofi, resident of Doabgah area of Sopore, was sitting with another boy in the grounds near the local mosque when unidentified militants fired at him.

"However, Suhail escaped the bullets and ran into the mosque. One militant chased him and fired five shots at the boy inside the mosque. Suhail died on the spot. We have registered a case in this regard and investigations have started."

Commenting on the killing, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said on his micro blogging twitter site: "Militants chase an 18-year-old boy into a mosque and shoot him. Imagine the outrage if this had been done by security forces #hypocrisy".

No guerrilla outfit has so far owned responsibility for the murder of the youth.