Poonch attack: LeT under radar as several detained
‘A worrying trend’: Cong condemns it Police to award Rs 10 lakh to anyone with information to trace Abu Hamza
MENDHAR/JAMMU: Several people were detained on Sunday as security forces launched a massive search operation in J&K’s Poonch district in the aftermath of a terrorist attack on two IAF vehicles that left one personnel dead.
Corporal Vikky Pahade of the Air Force was killed and 4 other air warriors were injured in the terrorist attack in the Bakrabal (Sanai) area of Surankote tehsil of Poonch. Intelligence agencies believe the attack was carried out by a group of terrorists led by Abu Hamza, a foreign terrorist of LeT (Lashkar-e-Taiba).
Officials said that in addition to AK assault rifles, the terrorists also used a USmade M4 carbine and steel bullets to cause maximum casualties.
The four injured air warriors were airlifted to the Northern Command Hospital in Udhampur. One was said to be in critical condition, while the other three were stable, according to doctors.
In the wake of the attack, security forces, including the local police, army and paramilitary forces, started a massive search operation Sunday morning in many areas of Poonch to trace the terrorists. ADGP, Jammu, Anand Jain, and senior officers of the army and intelligence agencies visited the ambush spot in the Surankote area.
Saturday’s attack was the first in Poonch since December 21, 2023, when 4 army soldiers were killed in a terrorist ambush in the Dera Ki Gali area of Bafliaz in the district.
Police have announced a cash reward of Rs 10 lakh to anyone whose information leads to the tracing of this foreign terrorist believed to be operating in the densely forested area of Poonch and Rajouri districts.
NEW DELHI: The Congress on Sunday said the attack in Poonch is part of a worrying trend of terror attacks in the area and asserted that after LS election results, the party and its INDIA bloc partners will leave no stone unturned in strengthening the counter terrorism grid in Jammu and Kashmir. “We strongly and unequivocally condemn this dastardly terror attack and join the nation in unitedly standing together against terrorism,” Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X. “Our approach will also be to consistently empower the political class and civil society, transcending religious and ethnic ties, which will support the efforts of our forces to mount a collective societal deterrence against terrorists in Rajouri-Poonch, an area which is vast and hilly,” he said.