NEW DELHI: A large-scale search operation in Jammu and Kashmir‘s
Poonch district
to apprehend the
terrorists
responsible for the attack on an Indian Air Force (IAF) convoy entered its second day on Sunday with security forces detaining several individuals for interrogation.
Anand Jain, the additional director general of police (Jammu) along with high-ranking Army and intelligence agency officials, visited the ambush site in the Surankote area.
The Army also conducted aerial surveillance using a helicopter.
The attack, which occurred on Saturday evening near Shahsitar, left five IAF personnel injured, with one succumbing to injuries at a military hospital later on.
The officials stated that a well-coordinated joint operation by the Army and the police was being conducted in various areas, including Shahsitar, Gursai, Sanai, and Sheendara Top, to neutralise the terrorists, who are believed to have escaped to a nearby forest following the attack.
In addition to AK assault rifles, the terrorists reportedly used a US-made M4 carbine and steel bullets to inflict maximum casualties.
The IAF identified the fallen soldier as Corporal Vikky Pahade and expressed condolences to his family. “The CAS (Chief of Air Staff) Air Chief Marshal V R Chaudhari & all personnel of Indian Air Force salute the braveheart Corporal Vikky Pahade, who made the supreme sacrifice in Poonch sector, in the service of the nation. Our deepest condolences to the bereaved family. We stand firmly by your side in this hour of grief,” the IAF posted on ‘X’.
According to the officials, teams of the Army’s Para Commandos were also deployed in the search operation.
As of yet, there has been no “contact” with the terrorists. The officials added that vehicle checks have been intensified throughout the district, which is set to vote in the sixth phase of the Lok Sabha election on May 25. Poonch is part of the Anantnag-Rajouri parliamentary constituency. The border district of Poonch, along with the neighboring Rajouri, has experienced major terrorist attacks over the past two years, following a period of peace between 2003 and 2021.
