J&K: 5 terrorists, 5 soldiers killed in year’s bloodiest gunfight

Srinagar: Five army soldiers and five terrorists were killed in Sunday’s gunfight on the LoC, in this year’s bloodiest gunfight in any operation against the terrorists in Jammu & Kashmir.

Defence sources said while one soldier and five terrorists were killed on Sunday in the LoC gunfight in Keran sector of J&K, four injured soldiers succumbed in the hospital late last evening.

The terrorists had attempted to exploit inclement weather as it was snowing since the last two days.

“At first light on April 5, one squad of soldiers, following the footsteps on the snow failed to realise that they were on a cornice…It broke…They fell into the nallah. As luck would have it, where they fell, the terrorists were sitting right there. It led to a firefight/Close Quarter Battle at virtually point blank range,” an Army statement said.

“Due to superior training standards of the Army team, inspite of the fall, all five terrorists killed… However, complete squad, five in all, were killed in action.”

The operation to flush out any hiding terrorists in the densely forested area is still going on, but so far there has been no further exchange of fire between the combing army personnel and the militants.

The five martyred soldiers have been identified as – Sub Sanjeev Kumar, Hav. Davendra Singh, Sepoy Bal Krishan, Sepoy Amit Kumar and Sepoy Chhatrapal Singh.

IANS