Srinagar: Four army personnel, including an officer, succumbed to their injuries following an encounter on Monday night in the Desa forests of Doda district in Jammu and Kashmir.
Reports said that five soldiers were injured while chasing terrorists who had fled into the forest after a brief, 20-minute encounter. Despite being evacuated to the hospital, four soldiers died from their injuries.
The deceased have been identified by the Army as Captain Brijesh Thapa, Naik D Rajesh, and sepoys Bijendra and Ajay.
The clash erupted when terrorists hiding in the forest suddenly opened fire on a security forces party conducting searches in the area, officials said. The terrorists attempted to escape but were pursued by the troops, led by an officer, through challenging terrain and dense foliage, leading to another firefight around 9 p.m.
The area has been encircled, and fresh reinforcements from the Army, including para commandos, have been deployed, officials said. Ground teams are being assisted by helicopter and drone surveillance, but there has been no sign of the militants so far.
“The search parties are struggling to navigate the dense forests on treacherous mountain terrain, where pine trees grow to a height of 200-250 feet with dense wild growth underneath. The forests are so dense that it is difficult to see someone hiding beyond 4-5 feet,” they added.
Sources believe the terrorists involved in the attack are the same group of foreigners who fled after attacking security forces and police in Doda’s Sezan forests on the evening of July 9. They also suspect there may be more terrorist groups in the higher reaches of Doda district.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has reportedly spoken to Army chief General Upendra Dwivedi about the ground situation in Jammu and Kashmir and the ongoing counter-terrorist operation in Doda.
Terrorist activities, initially concentrated in Poonch and Rajouri districts, have spread across the Jammu region, which had been free from terrorism until a few years ago. In the past 32 months, over 70 people, including 52 security personnel, have been killed in terror-related incidents in the Jammu region.
This incident marks the second major attack on the army in the Jammu region within the past 10 days. On July 8, five soldiers were killed and five others injured in a sudden and fierce attack by heavily armed terrorists on an army vehicle in Kathua district.
In June, nine pilgrims were killed and dozens wounded when terrorists opened fire on a bus carrying them from a shrine in the southern Reasi area of Jammu. This was one of the deadliest attacks in years and the first on Hindu pilgrims in Kashmir since 2017, when seven people were killed in an ambush on a bus.