Jammu, Feb 22(KNS): Security forces on Sunday killed a third terrorists in Kishtwar district of Jammu and Kashmir, taking the total number of terrorists neutralised in the ongoing Operation Trashi-I to three, officials said.
The latest gunfight took place in the Chatroo area, where joint teams of the Army, police and the CRPF have been carrying out searches in dense forest belts for the past several days.
The Army’s White Knight Corps said troops of the Counter-Insurgency Force (Delta), acting on specific intelligence inputs, re-established contact with the hiding militants around 11 am in difficult terrain. In the ensuing exchange of fire, one militant was killed.
Earlier in the day, two terrorists were killed during the operation. Security forces had recovered two AK-47 rifles and other war-like stores from the encounter site.
The operation was launched following inputs shared by the Jammu and Kashmir Police, Intelligence Bureau and the Army regarding the presence of militants in the forested stretches of Chatroo and adjoining areas.
Operation Trashi-I, initiated in January, has focused on flushing out militants from the mountainous pockets of Kishtwar district, including Chatroo, Sonnar, Dolgam and Dichhar. Multiple cordon-and-search operations have been conducted in these areas over the past weeks.
Officials said search operations were continuing to ensure that no militants remained in the area.(KNS)