Jammu: Two terrorists were killed in a fierce gunfight with army soldiers on Wednesday as the troops foiled an infiltration attempt along the Line of Control (LoC) in the Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir, a defence spokesman said. While the body of one terrorist has been recovered along with war-like stores, a search operation for the body of the second is underway, Jammu-based defence PRO Lt Col Suneel Bartwal said. He said the operation was launched after two terrorists were observed crossing the LoC on the intervening night of Tuesday and Wednesday in the Mandi sub-sector of Poonch. “A joint operation was launched by the Indian Army and police immediately to intercept the terrorists. The hostile terrain, dense jungle and steep gradient were utilised by the terrorists to bring down a heavy volume of fire on the troops,” the PRO said, adding both the terrorists were eliminated on Wednesday. Officials said the terrorists were noticed moving towards the border fence in the Sawjian area of Mandi taking cover of the darkness shortly after the midnight. Reinforcements were rushed to the area and a fierce gunbattle between the two sides started when the troops confronted the infiltrating terrorists, the officials said, adding the security forces suffered no casualty in the encounter. The encounter along the LoC comes just two days after security forces gunned down a hardcore terrorist in the remote Gali Sohab village in the Tuli area of Reasi district. However, another terrorist had managed to escape. A massive search operation launched to nab him entered the third day on Wednesday, the officials said. The border district of Poonch and Rajouri have witnessed several encounters this year, resulting in the killing of around 22 terrorists and 10 security personnel. Most of the terrorists were killed while attempting to sneak into this side from across the border, the officials said. (PTI)
