AK-47s, grenades, ‘Jaish’ note: Pathankot gunmen planned fiery standoff

Among 29 items recovered from the attackers nine days after the Pathankot airbase attack include a whopping 559 live rounds of 7.62 mm calibre, four AK-47 assault rifles with 30 magazines, three pistols with seven magazines and 47 live rounds, besides a grenade launcher. Sources said a motivational note – stating ‘Jaish-e-Mohammad Zindabad’ – was also found.

If the arms and equipment recovered from the Pathankot attackers are anything to go by, they had come prepared for a big battle.

Security personnel inside the Pathankot airbase after the military operation against terrorists ended on January 05, 2016. (Sameer Sehgal/HT Photo)

Nine days after the airbase came under attack, HT accessed the full list of 29 items recovered from the attackers – including a whopping 559 live rounds of 7.62 mm calibre and four AK-47 assault rifles with 30 magazines. The registration numbers of the Russian assault rifles have been identified.

Counter-terror officials have also recovered three pistols with seven magazines and 47 live rounds, besides a grenade launcher. Sources said a motivational note – stating ‘Jaish-e-Mohammad Zindabad’ – was also found.

So far, over two dozen grenades have been destroyed by the National Security Guard’s bomb disposal squad.

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Indian army soldiers take up position on the perimeter of an airforce base in Pathankot on January 4, 2016. (AFP File Photo)

The militants also came equipped with various items to handle contingencies such as medical emergencies and technical issues. According to the list, they possessed a wire cutter, a pair of pliers, a big knife, a multi-tool box, a wire tape, a first-aid box, a knife pad, four painkiller injections, a syringe, a vial of eye drops, seven painkiller tablets, 21 lozenges, two bandages, two bottles of Betadine, two combat rucksacks, binoculars, a mobile phone and two damaged notes of Rs 500.

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All grenades brought by the terrorists have reportedly been destroyed through ‘controlled explosions’. “We have recovered a piece of blown-up grenade with markings that may help us trace its origin,” an official said. However, many items must have also been destroyed during the attack, he added.

A home ministry statement said the NIA also plans to ask the Interpol to issue a Black Corner notice for identifying the bodies of four slain terrorists, and a Blue Corner notice to trace conspirators in the case.

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