Srinagar: Two jawans and two porters with the Army were killed and three other soldiers injured when a vehicle they are travelling in came under a sneak terror attack near Kashmir’s premier ski-resort of Gulmarg on Thursday night.
Reports said that the targeted vehicle was part of a small Army convoy moving through the Botapathri area near Gulmarg in Jammu and Kashmir’s northwestern Baramulla district.“The attack took place at Nagin Dhok in the Botapathri area which for its proximity with the Line of Control (LoC) sees a round-the-clock presence of the Army,” a senior official said.
The J&K police said that an exchange of fire took place between the security forces and terrorists near the Army Nagin Dhok post.
The Army’s Srinagar-based 15 Corps-also known as Chinar Corpse, in a post on X said, “A brief firefight took place between the Indian Army and terrorists in general area Botapathri, Baramulla. Details are being ascertained.”
The officials said the attack was likely carried out by “terrorists who may have infiltrated from across the LoC recently”. The Army has launched a search operation in the area to track down the assailants and was being assisted in the effort by the J&K police, the sources said.
The attack comes days after a local doctor and six construction workers were killed and four others injured in a similar terror act at Gagangir along the Srinagar-Leh highway. The police have detained more than forty people for questioning.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah who met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi hours after the attack took place termed the sudden spurt in the militant attacks as a matter of serious concern. In a brief statement, he said, “Very unfortunate news about the attack on the army vehicles in the Botapathri area of North Kashmir which has resulted in some casualties and injuries. This recent spate of attacks in Kashmir is a matter of serious concern. I condemn this attack in the strongest possible terms and send my condolences to the loved ones of the people who lost their lives. I also pray that the injured make a complete and swift recovery.”
The attack at the Army vehicle took place around the same time J&K Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha was holding a meeting of the Unified Headquarters (UHQ) in Srinagar to review the security situation in the Union Territory in the backdrop of the Gagangir attack.
The official sources said the Sinha asked the Army and other security forces to devise a fresh strategy to combat the latest threats, especially attacks on the vital infrastructure projects and non-J&K workforce.
