4 soldiers injured in Kishtwar gunfight, searches continue in Srinagar forest area

Srinagar (The Uttam Hindu): Four para commandos of the army were injured in a gunfight with terrorists in J&K’s Kishtwar district on Sunday while a search operation continued to trace terrorists in the Ishbar forest area of Srinagar district, officials said. Officials said that para commandos were injured in the gunfight between the security forces and the terrorists in the Chaas area of Kishtwar.

"The injured have been shifted to hospital while the cordon has been further tightened to trace the terrorists. The operation against the terrorists is still continuing in the Chaas area," an official said. Search operations also continued in the Ishbar forest area of Srinagar district where an early morning exchange of fire took place between the terrorists, believed to be two to three in number, and the security forces. Officials said that two local trekkers were rescued by the security forces from the Ishbar forest area where the initial firing exchanges took place after two to three persons carrying weapons were seen in the area.

"After the initial contact (firing exchanges) with the terrorists in Ishbar, the search operation is still continuing there," an official said. On Saturday, a terrorist was killed in an encounter in the Rampora locality of Sopore in Baramulla district. A day before that, two foreign terrorists were killed in another gunfight with the security forces in the Sagipora locality of Sopore town. Once known as the hometown and political bastion of hardline separatist leader, Syed Ali Shah Geelani, Sopore has traditionally been the hotbed of separatist sentiment in the Valley. Due to the overall improvement in the law & order situation and pro-active anti-terror thrust by the security forces, Sopore had not only returned to normal in the last few years, but a perceptible change of political loyalty also came to light when the people participated in the Lok Sabha and Assembly polls in large numbers.

Two back-to-back encounters in Sopore have brought to light the basic reality that unless terrorism and its ecosystem are completely wiped out in J&K, the situation will continue to be dicey and peace will remain fragile. It is for this reason that the Lt Governor, Manoj Sinha, who controls the police and remains responsible for law & order even after an elected government took office in J&K, has recently directed the security forces to spare no effort in eradicating terrorism, its sympathisers, harbourers, and the terror ecosystem that sustains violence. Intelligence agencies say that the handlers of terrorists across the border have directed the terrorists in J&K to carry out attacks in order to remain in news headlines irrespective of whether the victim is a civilian or from any security force - police, army, or paramilitary.