What is Pakistan's Border Action Team - All you need to know about 'barbaric' force which beheaded Indian soldiers

Pakistan Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa

New Delhi: In a shameful and cowardly act, Pakistan on Monday killed two Indian soldiers and mutilated their bodies.

This unsoldierly act by Pakistan Army has drawn harsh criticism from every corner for the extreme form of barbarism.

The attack was carried out by the Border Action Team (BAT).

Here are things you need to know about Pakistan's barbaric BAT and what they did with Indian soldiers:-

- BAT is comprised of the special forces of Pakistan.

- BAT acts under the cover of shelling by Pakistani troops.

- There have been several BAT attacks in the past in which Indian jawans have been beheaded or their bodies mutilated.

- In January 2013, Lance Naik Hemraj was killed and his body mutilated by a BAT.

- BAT also beheaded Lance Naik Sudhakar Singh. Constable Rajinder Singh of the BSF battalion had suffered injuries in the attack.

- In June 2008, a soldier of the 2/8 Gorkha Rifles lost his way and was captured by a Pakistani Border Action Team (BAT) in Kel sector. His body was found beheaded after a few days.

Reportedly, under the cover of heavy mortar fire, a Pakistani special forces team sneaked 250 metres across the Line of Control (LoC) into the Poonch sector and beheaded two Indian security personnel on Monday.

The Indian Army vowed an "appropriate" response to the "despicable act", which significantly took place a day after Pakistan army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa visited some areas along the LoC and promised support to the Kashmiris.

Defence Minister Arun Jaitley said in Delhi that the "sacrifice (of the two killed) will not go in vain" and the Indian armed forces will react "appropriately" to the "inhuman act" of the Pakistani troops.

"This is a reprehensible and an inhuman act. Such attacks do not take place during war," he said.

The BAT team had set up an ambush to target the patrol party of the Indian soldiers while the Pakistan Army engaged two Indian forward defence locations (FDL) with rockets and mortar bombs, the officials said.

The Pakistani army posts attacked two FDL posts with rockets and mortar bombs at 0830 hours and engaged them," the official said.

"Their target was a 7 to 8-member patrol party, which had come out of the post," the official said.

He said as the posts were engaged, the patrol party men ran here and there.

"Two members of the patrol party, who were left behind, were attacked by the BAT team and killed. Their bodies were badly mutilated," the official said.

"Pakistani Army carried out unprovoked rocket and mortar firing on two forward posts on the Line of Control in Krishna Ghati Sector (in Poonch district) this morning," a defence ministry spokesman said.

"Simultaneously, a BAT (Border Action Team) action was launched on a patrol operating in between the two posts," said a statement issued by the Northern Army Command.