Jammu, Jan 19: Security forces on Monday resumed search operations to hunt down terrorists believed to be hiding in the upper reaches of Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar district after a night-long halt, officials said.
The operation, launched on Sunday in Sonnar village near Mandral-Singhpora in the Chatroo belt, led to an encounter in which eight soldiers sustained splinter injuries following a sudden grenade attack by terrorists hiding in the area. The operation was suspended late Sunday night due to difficult terrain, dense vegetation and steep slopes that restricted visibility and movement.
Multiple teams of the Army, police and paramilitary forces, assisted by drones and sniffer dogs, are combing the area while maintaining a tight security cordon to prevent the terrorists from escaping, officials said. Two to three terrorists, suspected to be affiliated with the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), are believed to be trapped in the area. The search resumed at first light and was ongoing at the time of last reports, with no fresh contact established.
Named ‘Operation Trashi-I’, the Army’s Jammu-based White Knight Corps said on X that troops came in contact with terrorists in the general area of Sonnar, northeast of Chatroo, during a joint search operation with Jammu and Kashmir Police. Additional forces have been inducted to reinforce the cordon, with close coordination among civil administration and security agencies.
This was the third encounter in the Jammu region this year. Earlier encounters took place in the Kahog and Najote forests of Kathua’s Billawar area on January 7 and 13. On December 15 last year, a police officer was killed in an encounter in Udhampur’s Majalta area, where terrorists escaped under the cover of darkness and thick foliage.
Security operations have been intensified ahead of Republic Day amid intelligence inputs about attempts by Pakistan-based handlers to push more terrorists into the region. (Agencies)
