In a rather fierce gun battle, the Army was trying to save its personnel who were trapped inside a house in Jammu and Kashmir. As per the latest updates, the gunfight has stopped but a search operation is underway. The four security personnel, including Commanding Officer Col Ashutosh Sharma, Major of 21 Rashtriya Rifles unit along with two soldiers and one Jammu and Kashmir Police jawan, were killed in an encounter with terrorists at Handwara in North Kashmir, the Indian Army officials said.
Two terrorists were killed in the operation. However, the identity of the terrorists is yet to be ascertained.
The internet has been suspended in Handwara after the incident happened. According to a few reporters from the region, top security officials were trapped inside a house where the encounter was going on. The Forces, however, couldn't blast the house as security forces personnel were trapped inside with the terrorists.
Two terrorists have been shot dead by the security forces in the encounter. The terrorists who were trying to escape are suspected to be foreign terrorists. Bodies of the two terrorists have been recovered and the operation is still on.
The two terrorists were trying to escape after the operation was put on hold due to heavy rains and darkness. However, the terrorists did not realize that a strict cordon was in place. They tried to escape in darkness and were shot dead.
When the Army learned that its personnel have somehow got trapped in the same house where terrorists were holed up, the Forces were trying to establish contact with the CO and other officers for the last few hours, and reports also stated that the CO's phone landed up with one of the terrorists.
PAK's terror attempts continue
It should be noted that the lockdown due to coronavirus has not hampered Pakistan's attempts to attack India both technologically and through infiltrations. The recent attempt was through a fake Arogya Setu app developed by Pakistan to steal data from Indian Army personnel.
The fake app by Pakistani intelligence agencies was apparently sent to Indian defence personnel through WhatsApp from the UK to "steal info". The Pakistani establishment even launched several fake handles to create a wedge between Gulf countries and India. There have been ceasefire violations too from Pakistan's side as the world battles coronavirus pandemic.
#army #colonal, #major @JmuKmrPolice inspector & a cop got trapped in the house where militants are hold up in #Handwara #Kashmir, forces trying to establish contact with the army CO & other officers since last 03 hours. Ops is going on. Top security sources to @news24tvchannel pic.twitter.com/W5WYpIz7r6
— Corona Warrior News24 India (@news24tvchannel) May 2, 2020
The Army HQ has confirmed that the Handwara operation is in progress and urged not to report details such as fatalities, hostages ranks, etc until an official confirmation is given. "As a norm, the unit in contact is not disturbed to give out Breaking Inputs," the HQ stated.
