SRINAGAR: Five militants and three soldiers were killed and few others injured in the gunfight after troops foiled an infiltration attempt by militants near Line of Control (LoC) in Keran sector of Kupwara district in Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday.
Rajesh Kalia, defence spokesman in Srinagar, said the army foiled an attempt by militants to infiltrate the LoC by taking advantage of the bad weather. “In the anti-infiltration operation, our troops killed five militants in the gunfight,” he said.
Kalia said a soldier was killed in the gunfight and two others succumbed to injuries after being evacuated to army hospital in Srinagar. “Other injured are presently undergoing treatment,” he said.An army official said search operation in the Keran sector and its adjoining areas was going on.He said more troops were rushed to the area to assist in the search operation and prevent militants, if any, hiding in the area from sneaking into the union territory.
The search operation in the Keran sector and forests area of Kuwpara was launched last Wednesday after noticing suspicious movement in Jumgand forest of the district.Meanwhile, two soldiers committed suicide in Samba and Bandipora districts in J&K by shooting themselves from their own service rifles, sources said.
The deceased soldiers have been identified as Makhan Lal (40), who was posted with 6th Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry in Samba in Jammu province, and Sepoy Satendra Kumar Tomar, who was posted in Army camp in Pannar area in Bandipora district in north Kashmir.It is not known why the soldiers took extreme step.