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Srinagar: On Saturday, terrorists ambushed an Indian Air Force (IAF) convoy in Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir, killing one soldier and injuring four other soldiers, officials said. This incident has happened three weeks before the voting in Anantnag-Rajouri Lok Sabha constituency on May 25.
Officials said that in the evening, four terrorists opened fire on Indian Air Force vehicles heading towards Sanai Top in Surankote area of Poonch, injuring five security personnel, two of whom were in critical condition.
He said that one of the seriously injured soldiers later died during treatment in a military hospital. He said, terrorists attacked a convoy of Indian Air Force vehicles near Shahsitar in Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir. A cordon and search operation is currently underway in the area by local military units.
The Indian Air Force said in a post on ‘X’ that the convoy has been secured and further investigation is underway. In another post, the Air Force said, in the exchange of fire with the terrorists, the airmen returned fire. During this time, five Indian Air Force personnel were shot and were immediately taken to the nearest military hospital for medical treatment. An airman died during treatment. Further action is underway by local security forces.
The terrorist attack took place at around 6.15 pm when the soldiers were returning from Jaranwali to the Air Force base. Officials suspect involvement of the same group of terrorists who had ambushed soldiers in nearby Bufliaz on December 21 last year, in which four soldiers were martyred and three others were injured.
One of the trucks in the Indian Air Force convoy bore the brunt of the attack and several bullets hit its windscreen and side. The terrorists, armed with AK assault rifles, are believed to have fled into nearby forests, officials said.
He said that army and police have been rushed to the area and a massive search and cordon operation has been launched to locate and eliminate the terrorists. After receiving confidential information about the movement of suspicious persons, the police with the help of paramilitary forces were conducting searches in Poonch city since Friday. But officials said that no one was arrested during this search operation.
Poonch district, bordering with nearby Rajouri, has seen some major terrorist attacks in the last two years indicating the return of terrorist activities in the region, once the region was freed from terrorism and between 2003 and 2021. There was peace.
Jammu and Kashmir Congress on Saturday condemned the terrorist attack on the Air Force convoy. In a statement, State Congress Committee President Vikar Rasool Wani said there is a need to respond strongly to the repeated terrorist attacks on forces and underlined the need to curb the increase in terrorist activities in Jammu and Kashmir.
