| 3 militants, civilian killed in attack on army camp in Tangdhar | | | S.Tahir-ul Haq
Early Times Report
KUPWARA, Nov 25: Three foreign militants and a civilian were killed while two soldiers, including an officer, sustained injuries in a gunbattle close to the Line of Control (LoC) in Tangdhar area of north Kashmir's Kupwara district on Wednesday.
Officials said a group of three to four heavily armed militants attacked a post of army's 3/1 GR at Kulsuri Ridge in Tangdhar sector around 7:30 am on Wednesday, injuring two soldiers.
"After the initial gunfight, there was a brief lull. The gunfight erupted again at around 8.00 am. Some armored vehicles, army barracks and oil damp were destroyed during the six hour gun battle,"official sources told Early Times.
"An officer of the 104 Infantry Brigade was injured in the attack. He was shifted to army hospital for treatment and is said to be out of danger," they said.
Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Kupwara Aijaz Ahmad said three militants and a civilian Tanveer Ahmed S/O Muneer Ahmed Sheikh of Tangdhar Kupwara,who was an employee of army's Engineering Department, were killed while two soldiers including an officer sustained injuries in the gunbattle. The official said it could not be immediately ascertained whether militants involved in the attack were part of any infiltrating group.
The militants involved in the attack were most probably Fidayeen, but it can be confirmed after post mortem, the SSP said.
He said a "war-like store including 3 AK-47 rifles, 11 magazines, 2 UBGL has been recovered from the site of encounter." Army's Srinagar-based spokesperson Col N.N Joshi told Early Times that the operation is going on. "The operation will be called off only when the whole area and its adjacent is sanitized," he said. Meanwhile, in a statement to a local news agency, militant outfit Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) has claimed responsibility for the attack.
On November 24, General Commanding Officer (GOC) 15 corps Lt Gen Satish Dua had said that at least 50-60 militants are active in north Kashmir. |
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