Forces hunt for terrorists in Kishtwar's forests

JAMMU: After a night’s pause, a cordon-and-search operation launched in J&K’s Kishtwar district entered its second day Monday, as a joint team of security forces continued to extensively comb the dense forests to hunt and kill a group of terrorists holed up in the area.

“The Army and J&K Police had launched the operation on Sunday afternoon in the forests of Hadal Gal in Cherji in Kishtwar sector. After an initial gunfight, no exchange of fire took place between the terrorists and security forces. The search was halted around 8.30pm and resumed early Monday,” an official said.

The searches were expanded to nearby areas Monday. Additional troops were rushed to aid the operation and plug possible escape routes. Helicopters and drones were deployed for aerial surveillance, and sniffer dogs were roped in to assist the forces on the ground in tracking the terrorists’ movements through the forested terrain, officials said.

While there was no official confirmation about the presence of terrorist commanders in the area, it was believed that around two to three ultras were trapped in the cordon.

The fleeing ultras may be associated with terror outfit Hizbul Mujahideen , as one of its top commanders, Jahangir Saroori, has been active in the region for a long time and is one of the most-wanted terrorists on the radar of security and intelligence agencies, said official sources.

Some sources, however, speculated that the suspects could be part of a fresh group of infiltrators affiliated with the proscribed Jaish-e-Mohammad outfit, who sneaked into the area from Basantgarh in neighbouring Udhampur district, where a top Jaish commander was shot dead in an encounter on June 26.