Searches underway in Poonch forests to hunt down terrorists

Srinagar, May 04: Hours after the terrorist attack on an IAF convoy in Poonch district in which one soldier was killed and four injured, a cordon and search operation is underway to hunt down the terrorists. High alert has been sounded in the entire Poonch-Rajouri region, officials on Saturday.
A senior Army officer told Rising Kashmir that search operation has been launched by the Army, J&K Police and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) in the densely forested area of the district.
“The entire forest belt is still under tight security cordon to neutralise the terrorists. The area is mountainous and the forest is dense, making the operation difficult and dangerous. We have installed lights and more troops are arriving at the spot from nearby companies,” he said.
The officer said although security forces received an intelligence input from locals after they saw some suspicious men in the area, unfortunately the IAF convoy came under attack on Saturday evening.
“It is the same group of terrorists that was roaming in the region. They have recently infiltrated. We are hopeful that we will succeed in eliminating the entire group of terrorists involved in this attack,” he said.
The Army officer said on Sunday, they will be using both aerial and sniffer dogs to track the terrorists. Due to darkness during night, security forces are facing difficulty and the operation may be halted. Later it will be resumed in the morning, he said, adding that all nearby roads, paths have been closed for any movement.
Pertinent to mention, on April 22, terrorists shot dead Mohd Razaq, a Govt employee, in Kunda Shahdra area of Rajouri. As per Police investigation, a foreign Terrorist with code name ‘Abu Hamza’, was involved in this deadly attack.
This is the third major terror attack on the Army in this region in the past one year, after an ambush in Poonch’s Dera Ki Gali killed four soldiers and injured five others.
The Pir Panjal region – Rajouri and Poonch – were free from terrorism since 2003 but major attacks have resumed since October 2021. In the last seven months, 20 soldiers, including officers and commandos, have been killed.
Over 35 soldiers have been killed in action in these areas in the past two years.
On November 22, 2023 Two Army captains and three soldiers were killed in an Rajouri encounter. Following the massive searches Two Pakistani terrorists have also been killed during the operation in the Pir Panchal region.