AGENCIES
Four soldiers Indian Army and a Junior Commissioned Officer were killed after an encounter broke out between the security forces and militants in the Dehra Ki Gali area of Poonch district today.
Army Spokesperson Lt. Colonel Devendra Anand said the encounter is still underway. A gunfight began after a cordon and search operation was carried out by the Army on the basis of intelligence inputs in villages close to Dehra Ki Gali in the Surankote jurisdiction of Poonch district.
Meanwhile, another encounter was underway in Chamrer forests along the Mughal Road in Poonch. Three to Four militants are suspected to be trapped in the area. Sources said, and in that more reinforcement of police and security forces have been rushed to the area.
The exchange of fire was triggered during a cordon and search operation that was launched on Monday morning following intelligence inputs about the presence of around four to five terrorists in the forested area near the Line of Control (LoC) or the de facto border between India and Pakistan in J&K.
“In ensuing firefight during the ongoing encounter with terrorists, a JCO and four soldiers of Indian Army suffered critical injuries. The critically injured were evacuated to the nearest medical facility but they succumbed to their injuries,” said army spokesman Lt Col Devender Anand. He added additional reinforcements have been rushed to the area.
The identities of the slain soldiers were not immediately known. They lost their lives over a year after five security personnel, including a Colonel and a Major, were killed in an 18-hour anti-insurgency operation in the Handwara area of Kashmir Valley on May 2, 2020. The fresh casualties come after a series of targeted attacks left seven civilians dead in the Valley this month.