Three Soldiers Killed in Kashmir Gun Battle

Srinagar: Three jawans were killed and as many injured in a gunfight with a group of heavily armed militants after they ambushed two Army vehicles in the Dera ki Gali area of Jammu and Kashmir 's frontier Poonch district on Thursday afternoon. Other reports put the death toll as four.

The Army said that terrorists were following their attacking its vehicles quickly engaged in a gun battle which continued as reports last came in. Security forces reinforcements have laid siege to a vast area and plugged possible escape routes for the militants, the police sources said.    

A defence spokesman in Jammu said that the Army with the J&K police and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) was conducting an operation against terrorists at Dera Ki Gali in the Thanamandi area since Wednesday evening. “The operation was launched on hard intelligence about the presence of terrorists in the general area of Dera ki Gali,” he said.

The spokesman added, “Today (Thursday) at around 3.45 pm, two Army vehicles carrying troops to the operation site to reinforce the joint operation were ambushed by terrorists at Dera ki Gali. The fire was retaliated to. However, in the exchange of fire three soldiers got killed, while three were injured. Operation is in progress and further details are being ascertained,” he said.

Local news agency GNS reported that four Army jawans identified as B. Singh, K. Kumar, C. Kumar and G. Kumar were killed in the ambush and subsequent gunfight while injured are Sundeep Kumar, SS Dass and T.D. Bhaskarrav. However, the Army confirmed three deaths only.

A statement issued by the Army at Nagrota (Jammu) said, “At approximately 3.45 pm on December 21, two Army vehicles carrying troops were moving to the operational site, which were fired upon by the terrorists.  The fire was immediately retaliated upon by own troops. In the ongoing operation, own troops sustained 3 fatal and 3 non-fatal casualties.”

The police sources said that the attackers believed to be the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) cadres- most probably Pakistani nationals-targeted a truck and a Gypsy of the Indian Army at Dhatyar Morh between Dera ki Gali and Bufliaz under the jurisdiction of the Surankote police station of Poonch.

A report from neighbouring Rajouri district said that the reinforcements from the Army, J&K police and the CRPF have been rushed to the area to take on the fleeing militants. The Thannamandi- Dera ki Gali-Bufliaz road has been closed and vehicular traffic to Srinagar (via Mughal Road) and Poonch has been diverted. “Since an encounter is underway in the Dera ki Gali area, all are informed to use BG - Jara Wali Gali road to travel to Srinagar or Poonch,” a traffic police spokesman said.