NEW DELHI: The Indian Army opened a retaliatory firing at the Pakistani troops across the Line of Control (LoC) on Sunday.
The incident occurred in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch sector at about 11 am.
“At about 11 AM today, Pakistan troops opened small arms fire on own (Indian) post across LoC in Poonch Sector, J&K. The fire was retaliated appropriately by the Indian Army. No casualties to own side,” the Army officials told news agency ANI.
On February 8, terrorists fired at a patrol from a forested area across LoC in Keri sector of Rajouri, prompting a retaliatory response from Indian soldiers.
In the intervening night of February 4 and 5, a landmine explosion in Krishna Ghati sector of Poonch district caused casualties among terrorists attempting to cross LoC. However, there was no official confirmation on the number of deaths. J&K saw a spate of terrorist attacks between May and December last year, prompting heightened counteroffensives by security forces.
More than 30 terrorists were eliminated before the onset of the region’s harsh winter. Security forces also recorded 25 fatalities during this period — 19 in Jammu and six in Kashmir.
Official sources estimated that of the 70 to 80 Pakistani terrorists active in J&K, nearly 55 to 60 are in Jammu zone.
These “highly trained intruders” operate in small groups of three to four, armed with sophisticated weapons such as M4 carbines, and use advanced techs like iridium satellite phones and thermal imagery.
On Saturday, three J&K government employees – a police constable, a teacher, and an orderly in the forest department – were dismissed by order of lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha for alleged terror activities, including arranging weapons, providing targets for terror attacks, and fueling violent protests in the Valley, all at the behest of handlers based in Pakistan and POK.