Just a day after four army personnel were killed in a terror attack, security forces launched a massive cordon and search operation in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch district on Friday.
An official said aerial monitoring is also being conducted and sniffer dogs have been pressed into service to track down the terrorists who ambushed two Army vehicles in the area Thursday afternoon. "A massive cordon and search operation has begun this morning after a night cordon in area," an officer told PTI.
He said that additional troops have been inducted into area to track down the terrorists involved in the firing. According to officials, the vehicles came under attack at Dhatyar Morh between Dhera Ki Gali and Bufliaz under the jurisdiction of the Surankote police station around 3.45 pm.
The People's Anti-Fascist Front (PAFF), an offshoot of Pakistan-based terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), claimed responsibility for the ambush. Ghulam Nabi Azad and Mehbooba Mufti strongly condemned the attack.
Army issues statement clarifying number of soldiers
The Indian Army issued a statement clarifying the number of soldiers who died in the attack. It stated, "This is with reference to yesterday’s incident where four soldiers suffered fatal casualties and three soldiers were injured. Some media houses and agencies are reporting incorrect figures of casualties (five or six fatal) while a few are posting disturbing photos/ videos. Mention of mutilation and running away with weapons was also reported by some."
"It is requested that sensitivities of the families of soldiers be considered before posting any images or videos. Further, facts are requested to be verified from official sources before posting/uploading on media or social media platforms," It further said.
What had happened?
Jammu-based defence PRO Lieutenant Colonel Suneel Bartwal said a joint search operation was launched in the general area of Dhera Ki Gali in the Thanamandi-Surankote region of Poonch on Wednesday night on the basis of "hard intelligence" about the presence of terrorists.
As additional forces were moving to the site, the ultras fired upon the Army vehicles -- a truck and a Maruti Gypsy. The troops swiftly responded to the attack, the defence spokesperson said. The injured have been admitted to a hospital.
Earlier, disturbing images and videos emerging from the site showed blood on the street, broken helmets of soldiers and shattered windscreens of the two Army vehicles. As the operation continues, authorities are diligently working to gather more information and do away with the threat posed by terrorists in the region.
The ambush came weeks after a major gunfight in the Dharmsal belt of the Bajimaal forest area in nearby Rajouri district that left five Army personnel, including two captains, dead last month. A top commander of the LeT, Quari, who masterminded several attacks, including the killing of 10 civilians and five Army personnel, and one of his associates were killed in the two-day-long encounter in November.
The stretch between Dhera Ki Gali and Bufliaz on the boundary of Rajouri and Poonch districts is densely forested and leads to Chamrer forest and then Bhata Dhurian forest, where five soldiers were killed in an ambush on an Army vehicle on April 20.
ALSO READ | Jammu and Kashmir: Four jawans killed, 3 injured after terrorists attacked Army vehicles in Poonch
ALSO READ | Jammu and Kashmir: Hybrid terrorist arrested in Pulwama, arms, ammunition recovered
