Militants believed to be 5-7 in numbers
Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Oct 29: Some portion of forests in Bhatta Durrian in Mendhar tehsil of Poonch district has caught fire in view of heavy firing by security forces targeting militants even as operations against the latter entered 19th day today amidst reports that number of the ultras inside the forests was initially five to seven.
Reports said that a portion of Bhatta Durrian forests where the militants were reportedly hiding caught fire due to intense firing and rocket launchers used by the Army to target the militant hideouts including the caves to eliminate them.
However, the fire is now well under control and operations against the militants by the troops are progressing though a success remained elusive so far.
As per the reports, number of the militants who were hiding inside Bhatta Durrian forests in Mendhar was stated to be between five to seven and most of them were believed to be Pakistanis.
There has been no direct contact between militants and security forces for the past several days.
“Possibility that the militants were either killed or injured can’t be ruled out completely,” the officials said but added that there has been no confirmation of this.
There has been let up in Army operations against the militants in Bhatta Durrian forests. Troops continued aggressive search operations against the militants deep inside the forest area. Large part of the forests has been cleared by the security personnel.
Nine Army personnel including two Junior Commissioned Officers (JCOs) have been martyred in two contacts with the militants–first in Chamrer forests of Surankote on October 11 and second time at Bhatta Durrian jungles in Mendhar on October 14. While five jawans lost their lives in first encounter, four were killed in the second.
There have been reports that the militant group was hiding in the forest area for past couple of months after their infiltration from Pakistan through the Line of Control (LoC) in twin border districts of Poonch and Rajouri.
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