Jammu: A violent confrontation in a secluded forested region of Kathua district has resulted in the deaths of two terrorists and injuries to five security personnel, as authorities escalated their efforts to neutralize a group of approximately five infiltrating militants, officials reported on Thursday.
It remains uncertain whether this group is the same one that previously evaded capture in the Sanyal forest of the Kathua area or if they are a new set of infiltrators.
The encounter was marked by heavy gunfire and explosions, according to officials.
The gunfight, which took place near Jakhole village in the Ghati Juthana area of Rajbagh, involved around five terrorists. The initial exchange of fire led to injuries for Special Police Officer Bharat Chalotra, who suffered facial injuries.
He received treatment at a hospital in Kathua before being transferred to the Government Medical College Hospital in Jammu, where his condition has been reported as stable.
Officials indicated that two terrorists were killed during the operation conducted by the Special Operations Group (SOG) of the Jammu and Kashmir Police, with support from the Army, BSF, and CRPF.
Compounding the situation, three security personnel, including a Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO), were reportedly trapped near the site of the gunfight, close to a stream obscured by thick vegetation.
Officials stated that a clearer understanding of the situation would only be available once the ongoing encounter concludes.
It is noteworthy that a group of terrorists was intercepted by the SOG in the Hiranagar sector of Kathua district on Sunday evening. Despite extensive search efforts, the terrorists managed to evade the initial cordon, and it is believed that they may have been spotted near Jakhole, approximately 30 kilometers from the original encounter site.
The terrorists were traversing the forested area when a police unit led by a Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO) arrived in response to specific intelligence, according to officials. They encountered heavy gunfire, which led to an intense gunfight.
Reinforcements from the police, army, and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) were promptly dispatched to the location.
The tranquil village of Suffain in the Kathua district was disrupted by the continuous sounds of gunfire, grenades, and rocket fire as a fierce battle unfolded throughout the day, marked by a series of significant explosions.
Earlier, on Sunday evening, a group of terrorists was intercepted within a ‘dhok,’ a local term for an enclosure in a nursery, in Sanyal village, situated near the International Border with Pakistan.
A large-scale search operation was subsequently launched, involving the police, army, National Security Guard (NSG), Border Security Force (BSF), and CRPF, employing advanced technical and surveillance tools, including helicopters, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), drones, armored vehicles, and sniffer dogs.
On Monday, search teams uncovered various items, including four loaded magazines for an M4 carbine, two grenades, a bulletproof vest, sleeping bags, tracksuits, food supplies, and materials for creating improvised explosive devices (IEDs) near the site of the Hiranagar encounter.
Authorities suspect that the terrorists infiltrated on Saturday, likely using a ravine route or a newly constructed tunnel from across the border.
The Director General of Police, Nalin Prabhat, along with the Inspector General of Police for the Jammu Zone, Bhim Sen Tuti, has been supervising the anti-terrorism operation from Kathua for the past four days, as reported by officials.
