In developments that don’t augur too well for Indo-Pak relations, four soldiers were killed in an ambush by militants in South Kashmir and the ceasefire agreement along the line of Control (loC) was violated by the Pakistan Army in Baramulla district on Friday.
In the first incident that took place on Friday morning, four soldiers belonging to a newly-installed Indian Army unit died in south Kashmir’s Tral belt as militants ambushed a column of soldiers pursuing them in a dense forest. One militant was also killed in the encounter.
An army spokesman described it as a heavy loss. Militants have reportedly decamped with the service rifles of the slain soldiers but left back a damaged rifle snatched earlier from a police post.
Tral in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district had been highly volatile in the past but the number of active militants has witnessed a sharp decline in recent years.
The slain militant Saifullah Ahanger had joined militant ranks a few months ago after completing an engineering course.
Sources said that a Three Rashtriya Rifles unit, recently deployed at Hardumir Village in Tral after reorganization of security camps, had a tip-off that a group of militants was in Kamla Buchoo forests in the area.
A column of soldiers left the unit in the wee hours for a combing operation but they came under heavy fire.
In the initial attack, two soldiers died on the spot, while another soldier died on the way to hospital. The fourth soldier died in a Srinagar Hospital.
Defence sources said that at least one soldier died due to cardiac arrest during the exchange of fire.
While Hizbul Mujahideen and lashkar-e-Tayyeba outfits have cadre base in the area, none of the groups has so far claimed responsibility for the attack.
Sources said that reinforcements were called in after the assault and the entire area was cordoned off to track down the militants. Almost two hours after the first attack, the security forces intercepted the holed up militants leading to a gun-battle in which a recently-recruited militant was killed.
Combing operations were still on at the time of filing of this report.
Sources said that the militants have taken away service rifles of the slain soldiers.
The encounter took place a day after police shot dead a lashkar-e-Tayyeba militant Bilal Molvi in a shootout at Fatah Kadal locality of old Srinagar. Three policemen were wounded in the shootout, police said.
In the second incident, that took place on Friday evening, the Pakistan Army violated the ceasefire agreement along the loC in Kaiyan bowl area of Nowgam sector in Baramulla district.
The unprovoked firing from the Pakistani side continued for over one hour and was effectively retaliated by the Indian forces, Defence sources claimed.
Meanwhile, an army jawan posted in KG sector of Poonch was killed when he stepped on a landmine during routine patrolling in the forward area of Poonch. The jawan has been identified as lance Naik Rakesh Kumar, official sources said.