Three Soldiers Injured in Encounter With Terrorists in J&K’s Kishtwar

Jammu, Jan 18: Three Army personnel sustained injuries during an encounter with terrorists in a remote forested area in the upper reaches of Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar district on Sunday, officials said.
The gunfight broke out during a joint search operation by the Army and Jammu and Kashmir Police in the general area of Sonnar, northeast of Chatroo. The operation, launched around noon, has been codenamed ‘Operation Trashi-I’ by the Army’s Jammu-based White Knight Corps.
In a post on X, the White Knight Corps said security forces established contact with the terrorists during a deliberate search operation as part of ongoing counter-terror efforts in the region.
“Operations remain underway with additional forces inducted to reinforce the cordon, supported by close coordination with the civil administration and other security agencies,” the Army said, praising the troops for their professionalism and resolve while responding to hostile fire in difficult terrain and weather conditions.
Officials said one of the search teams encountered a group of two to three foreign terrorists, suspected to be affiliated with the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM). The terrorists allegedly opened indiscriminate fire and lobbed grenades in an attempt to break the security cordon.
The troops retaliated effectively, following which reinforcements from the Army, Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), and local police were rushed to the area to tighten the cordon. Intermittent firing continued for some time, officials added.
The three injured soldiers suffered splinter injuries and were evacuated to a hospital for treatment. Their condition is reported to be stable.
A massive search operation is underway to track and neutralise the terrorists. Advanced surveillance equipment, including drones, along with sniffer dogs, has been deployed to aid the operation.
This marks the third encounter between security forces and terrorists in the Jammu region this year. Similar encounters were reported in the Kahog and Najote forest areas of Kathua district’s Billawar sector on January 7 and 13, respectively.
Last month, on December 15, a police officer was killed in an encounter with terrorists in Soan village of the Majalta area in Udhampur district. The attackers managed to escape under the cover of darkness and dense foliage.
Security operations have been intensified across forested belts of the Jammu region since December to flush out militants, especially in the run-up to Republic Day, amid intelligence inputs indicating attempts by Pakistan-based handlers to push more terrorists into the region.