A fresh encounter broke out between security forces and holed-up terrorists in the Kishtwar district of Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday (January 22), officials said. Contact was re-established with the terrorists in the Singhpura area of the Chatroo subdivision during a search operation that has been underway for the past five days.
According to sources, an exchange of fire took place after the forces regained contact, and the operation is currently ongoing.
Paratrooper was killed, and seven soldiers were injured
The operation was launched on Sunday in Sonnar village near Mandral-Singhpora in the Chatroo belt. The initial gunfight left one paratrooper dead and seven others injured, mostly due to splinter injuries sustained in a sudden grenade attack by the hiding terrorists.
A major terrorist hideout was busted near the encounter site on Monday and several individuals were picked up for questioning, the officials said, adding that there was no fresh contact with the terrorists. Security agencies believe a group of two to three terrorists, allegedly linked to the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad, is trapped in the area.
Additional troops were mobilised
In Kishtwar, additional troops were mobilised in Sonnar, Mandral-Singhpora, and adjoining areas in the Chatroo belt to speed up the ongoing search for terrorists, which the Army has named 'Operation Trashi-I'.
Security forces are also engaged in search and combing operations at dozens of places including Rajouri, Poonch, Samba, Kathua, Udhampur and Doda districts of Jammu, officials said.
This is the third encounter between security forces and terrorists in the Jammu region this year. The previous encounters were held in the Billawar area of Kathua district on January 7 and 13, respectively. It should be noted that security forces have remained on alert in the region in view of the Republic Day, as intelligence reports have claimed that Pakistan is trying to infiltrate more terrorists into the region through the International Border (IB) and Line of Control (LoC).
(Input: Rahi Kapoor)
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