Zee Media Bureau
Jammu: On a day when militants dressed in Army uniforms attacked a police station and then an Army camp in Jammu and Kashmir, Indian Army on Thursday foiled a major infiltration bid along the Line of Control in Keran sector of Kashmir.
According to reports, around 30 militants are believed to be holed up in the area and all efforts are being made to flush them out capture them. The security forces have cordoned off the area in over to avoid collateral damage.
Troops engaged in the operation, which began on September 24, have reported sighting of 10 to 12 bodies of militants but confirmation about the deaths can be made only after the operation ends, a top Army official said today.
"The anti-insurgency operation was started on September 24 and contacts were established with the infiltrating militants at multiple points," the official said.
He said based on the pattern of gunfire exchanged with the militants, their number is believed to be more than 30.
"The mopping up operation is in progress and we expect to clear up the area in next two to three hours," he said.
The official dismissed reports that helicopters were used to target the militants during the operation.
"Choppers were only used to airlift the troops from various locations for the operation and not used in the firefight," he added.
Army is also carrying out an anti-infiltration operation in nearby Machhil sector since yesterday. One militant was killed in a foiled infiltration bid in the sector on September 23.
The infiltration bid coincides with the audacious terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir and three days ahead of Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh`s meeting with his Pakistani counterpart in the US.
Dr Manmohan Singh has called it "one more attack and barbarism by enemies of peace" and made it clear that his plans remain unchanged.
"We will not allow it to derail our attempts to find resolution through the dialogue process," he said in a statement.
