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Anantnag encounter enters Day 4; hunt on for terrorists
The police believe that one of the terrorists holed up in the area is Uzair Khan, who has been operating in the area and knows the lay of the land
NEW DELHI/SRINAGAR: Northern Army commander Lieutenant General Upendra Dwivedi on Saturday reviewed the ongoing counterterror operation in Jammu and Kashmir’s Anantnag district where the hunt for terrorists who killed two army officers, a jawan and a deputy superintendent of police (DSP) entered its fourth day.
Security forces have not made headway in their efforts to neutralise the perpetrators holed up in a hill cave, officials tracking the encounter said.
Dwivedi was briefed by the local commanders on all aspects of the joint operation by the army and Jammu and Kashmir Police, including the high-tech equipment being used for surveillance and the weapons to target the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists.
“#LtGenUpendraDwivedi #ArmyCdr, Northern Command reviewed the operational situation on the ongoing operations at #Kokernag forest area in #Anantnag. He was briefed by the ground commanders on the High Intensity Operations in which Hi-tech Equipment is being used for surveillance and delivery of firepower along with the high impact of precision fire being used by the forces,” the Udhampur-based Northern Command wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
Colonel Manpreet Singh, the commanding officer of 19 Rashtriya Rifles, Major Aashish Dhonchak, also from the same battalion, DSP Humayun Muzamil Bhat and a radio operator were killed in the encounter. Singh, Dhonchak and Khan were leading teams that were hot on the trail of the terrorists in the treacherous terrain and were fired upon from concealed positions while climbing a steep slope.
“The operation has entered its final stage and there will be positive news shortly,” said a senior officer, asking not to be named. The operation continued despite heavy rain in the area, with the anti-terror squads targeting the suspected hideout of the terrorists with an array of weapons including Carl-Gustaf rocket launchers and under-barrel grenade launchers.
Two soldiers are recovering at the army’s base hospital in Srinagar; one of them has a gunshot wound in the leg while the other was injured after a fall.
The police believe that one of the terrorists holed up in the area is Uzair Khan, who has been operating in the area and knows the lay of the land. He joined LeT only a year ago but quickly climbed the terror ranks to become a so-called commander.
The operation involves some of the army’s toughest fighting men, including those from the special forces, and counterterrorism specialists from the J&K Police. The army and the police launched a joint operation on Tuesday night after receiving intelligence about terrorist movement and their likely hideout in the forested area.
