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3-4 terrorists attacked army convoy: J&K Police
Apart from the army and police, the paramilitary forces are also engaged in search operations to trace the terrorists
As the search operation to track down the terrorists responsible for the attack on army vehicles at Butapathri entered its second day on Saturday, Jammu and Kashmir Police said three to four terrorists were involved in the attack on the army convoy.
Apart from the army and police, the paramilitary forces are also engaged in search operations to trace the terrorists. The forces are using drones, quadcopters and human intelligence to track the attackers and police have some initial information about the attackers.
Baramulla senior superintendent of police (SSP) Zahid Mohammad said the operation against the attackers was resumed in the morning on Saturday. “The police, army and paramilitary forces are engaged in operation right from Babareshi forest to other areas of Gulmarg,” he said, adding that the evidence, which they have gathered shows three to four terrorists were involved in the attack in Butapathri. “Before this attack, input-based operations were launched in Pattan and Kreeri areas of Baramulla district,” he added.
On Thursday evening, a convoy carrying personnel of a Rashtriya Rifles unit and civilian porters was moving to the Nagin post in the Afrawat range when terrorists opened fire on two army trucks at Botapathri, roughly 6km from the tourist hub of Gulmarg. Two soldiers and two civilian porters were killed in the ambush.
The deceased were identified as Rifleman Jeevan Singh, Rifleman Kaisar Ahmad Shah and defence porters Mushtaq Ahmad Chowdary and Zahoor Ahmad Mir.
People’s Anti-Fascist Front, which is believed to be a front of the Jaish-e-Mohammed, claimed responsibility for Thursday’s attack. The outfit, which warned of more attacks, released a picture of an Army vehicle that was targeted in the forests of Butapathri.
The army on Friday said Pakistani terrorists were behind the attack at Buthpathri in Ganderbal, in which two soldiers and two porters were killed.
The army said before fleeing, the terrorists also left a weapon behind. Pakistani terrorists, to disrupt peace and stability in Kashmir, targeted an army column in the general area of Butapathri.
After the attack, security has been alerted across north Kashmir, especially the areas through which, the army convoys pass during late hours. Night domination operations have been also undertaken in certain areas of north Kashmir.
