Daijiworld Media Network - Jammu
Jammu, Feb 22: Three terrorists, including a top commander of the Pakistan-based outfit Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), were killed in a joint anti-terror operation by security forces in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar district on Sunday, officials said.
In a post on X, the Army’s Nagrota-headquartered White Knight Corps said that troops under Operation Trashi-I had neutralised the third terrorist in continued operations in the region. The operation was carried out by troops of CIF (Delta) in coordination with the Jammu and Kashmir Police and the CRPF.
“The remains and the weapon of the terrorist have been recovered. The pursuit continues — no space, no sanctuary for those who seek to undermine stability. We Serve, We Protect,” the Corps said.
Officials identified one of the slain militants as Saifullah, a top commander of JeM. Intelligence agencies described his killing as a significant success in ongoing anti-terror operations in the Jammu division.
Earlier, the White Knight Corps had stated that the operation was launched based on credible intelligence inputs from the J&K Police, the Intelligence Bureau, and Army sources to track and neutralise terrorists operating in the Kishtwar region. During the encounter, two AK-47 rifles and other war-like stores were recovered.
Security forces re-engaged the terrorists around 11 a.m. in challenging, forested terrain. According to officials, the troops displayed coordinated action and tactical precision in dominating the encounter site.
This marks the second encounter in the area this month, following a gunfight in the same densely forested belt on February 4. Over the past year, more than a dozen encounters have taken place in the Chatroo area of Kishtwar.
Security agencies believe a group of foreign terrorists has been operating across the hilly districts of Kishtwar, Doda and Udhampur, frequently shifting locations to evade capture amid sustained operations by the Army, police and paramilitary forces.
During his recent visit to Jammu on February 7, Union Home Minister Amit Shah directed security forces to adopt a mission-mode approach to eliminate Pakistani terrorists and ensure lasting peace in the Union Territory.