Srinagar: In a yet another blow to terrorists operating in the Kashmir valley, the security forces on Tuesday gunned down two Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) terrorists following a brief but fierce encounter in Mamender village of Shopian district.
Initial reports suggest that one of the two slain terrorists was a top JeM commander and was wearing a bullet proof jacket. He was a Pakistani national and further details were awaited.
A senior police official said that the firing exchanges have stopped but searches were underway in the area.
Stating that it was a clean operation, the police official said that no collateral damage or injury to any civilian or security force personnel occurred in the operation that started on wee hours of Tuesday.
Meanwhile, heavy firing started on the Line of Control (LoC) on Wednesday between Indian and Pakistani troops in Jammu and Kashmir’s Uri sector, defence sources said.
Indian forces have been retaliating in a measured but strong way to the Pakistan Army that has been using mortars and small arms to target Indian positions in Kamalkote area since early morning.
Heavy firing exchanges were also continuing intermittently at 40 places on the LoC, including Poonch, Rajouri and Jammu districts since Tuesday night, hours after Indian Air Force fighter jets dropped a 1,000 kg bomb on JeM terror camp in Balakot in a “non-military, pre-emptive” action.
The move came 12 days after 40 Central Reserve Police Force troopers were killed by a JeM terror strike in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district.