Jammu: Two heavily-armed terrorists, believed to be members of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), were killed in a fierce gunfight as alert Army troops foiled their infiltration bid along the Line of Control in Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday, officials said.
The encounter comes two days after security forces eliminated three hardcore terrorists, who were involved in the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, in a forest in Srinagar.
The Army said Wednesday’s operation, conducted under the code name ‘ShivShakti’, is a major setback to nefarious designs of Pakistan-sponsored terrorist organisations that are constantly abetting acts of terror in Jammu and Kashmir.
“In a coordinated counter-terrorism operation, troops of the Indian Army launched ‘Operation ShivShakti’ in the Poonch sector during the early hours of July 30. The operation was based on credible intelligence inputs acquired by synergistic and synchronised intelligence coordination by military and civil intelligence units in concert with J&K Police regarding the presence of terrorists in the area,” a defence spokesperson said.
“Acting swiftly on the inputs, the security forces laid coordinated ambushes on the possible infiltration routes. A fierce gunfight ensued between the security forces and terrorists along the Line of Control, leading to the neutralisation of two terrorists and recovery of large quantities of war-like stores,” he said.
According to the spokesperson, swift, coordinated and decisive action by the security forces prevented any collateral damage and ensured the safety of the local population.
The recovered war-like stores include two assault rifles with ammunition, one pistol with ammunition, hand grenades, two improvised explosive devices, medicines, communication device and other logistic stores, the spokesperson said.
He said the huge recovery of war-like and logistics stores indicates that the terrorists were well-prepared for prolonged engagement.
“This operation highlights a high level of synergy, coordination and commitment on the part of the Indian Army and other security agencies towards maintaining peace and security in the region. Search operation is in progress in the surrounding areas to rule out the presence of any more terrorists in the area,” the Army said.
The officials said troops on ambush duty, following information about possible attempts by LeT terrorists to sneak into this side, saw the movement of infiltrating terrorists in the Maldivalan area of Degwar sector on the intervening night of July 29 and 30.
The terrorists opened fire on the ambush party and in the ensuing encounter, which lasted several hours, two terrorists were hit. A search operation was launched with the first light of the day and both the terrorists were confirmed dead in the encounter, they said.
