Terror strikes Kathua: 5 soldiers killed, 5 injured in ambush

Kathua, July 08: In a dastardly terror attack, five soldiers were killed and five others injured when their vehicle was ambushed by terrorists in the remote Machedi area of Billawar in Kathua district, on Monday.
The attack occurred around 3:30 pm when the Army vehicle was on a routine patrol on the Machedi-Kindli-Malhar road near Badnota village, 150 km from Kathua town. Terrorists hurled a grenade and opened fire, targeting the vehicle.
Security forces retaliated, but the terrorists fled into nearby forests, leaving behind a trail of blood and destruction. An intermittent exchange of firing continued between the terrorists and security forces till last reports came in.
The deceased soldiers include JCO Anant Singh, Naib Subedar Kamal Singh, Head Constable Kamal Singh, Rifleman Anuj Singh, and Rifleman Asharsh Singh. The injured have been identified as Head Constable Arvind Singh, Head Constable Sujhan Ram, Gagan Deep Singh, Vinod Kumar, Sagar Singh, and Rifleman Kartik.
The search operation is still underway, with security forces combing the area to track down the terrorists responsible for the attack, the Defence PRO, Suneel Bartwal said.