SRINAGAR: Five Army personnel were killed and several others, including an officer, were injured in a blast triggered by terrorists during an ongoing encounter in Kandi area of Rajouri district in Jammu and Kashmir on Friday. Two army personnel died during the operation, while three others who were seriously injured later succumbed to their injuries during treatment. The army said an anti-militancy operation is currently underway and the entire area is being searched.
J&K DGP Dilbag Singh and ADGP Jammu Mukesh Singh have also reached Kandi area of Rajouri, where the encounter is still going on.
Sharing more details, Defense Spokesperson said that during the operation, “the terrorists retaliated with an explosion. Two soldiers died on the spot, four others were injured and taken to Command Hospital, Udhampur. Among them Three have died because of them.” Injuries.
The Army said in a statement that a joint operation was launched on 03 May 2023 on specific information about the presence of terrorists in Kandi forest of Rajouri sector.
“Today at about 0730 hours, a search party established contact with a group of terrorists well entrenched in a cave. The area is rocky and densely vegetated with steep cliffs,” it said.
The army further said that the terrorists detonated an explosive device in retaliation. “The army team suffered two fatal casualties, in which four more soldiers, including an officer, were injured,” the statement initially said.
Additional teams from nearby areas were immediately rushed to the encounter site. It informed earlier, “The injured personnel have been shifted to Command Hospital, Udhampur.”
The army initially told that a group of terrorists is trapped in the area. “There is a possibility of casualties on the terrorist side,” the army said. The operation is on and further details are being ascertained, he said.
Jammu and Kashmir is on high alert in view of the G20 meeting starting in Kashmir from May 22. Following the Poonch attack, in which five soldiers were killed, a red alert has been declared for the borders – the Line of Control and the International Border. It is also believed that the terrorists who carried out the Poonch attack had infiltrated into the Indian side recently.
Patrolling along the Line of Control and International Borders has been intensified and patrolling is done day and night to ensure that no terrorists can infiltrate or terrorists from across the border do not smuggle any kind of arms and ammunition on this side. Can deliver
Meanwhile, mobile internet services have been suspended in Rajouri area, officials said.