Three soldiers of the Indian Army, including a captain, were killed today and as many as five injured in an attack on an army camp in the Kupwara district in Jammu and Kashmir. The injured were airlifted to Army’s 92 base hospital for treatment, according to PTI. The camp is located in Panzgam in Kupwara very close the Line of Control, about a 100 kilometres from the capital Srinagar. Two terrorists were also killed in retaliatory action, and two more were believed to have slipped into the camp, and efforts were on to smoke them out. The terrorists had attacked the army personnel who were involved in road opening duties in the area. The incident took place a little after 4.00 am.
My thoughts & prayers are with the families of the 3 martyred soldiers. Prayers for speedy recovery of the injured.
— Arun Jaitley (@arunjaitley) April 27, 2017
The indomitable courage of our forces in safeguarding the country is exemplary. Salute to martyrs for their supreme sacrifice.
— Arun Jaitley (@arunjaitley) April 27, 2017
Army camp in Kupwara attacked. 3 of our brothers martyred. 2 terrorists killed. Encounter in progress. #IndianArmy
— Major Gaurav Arya (@majorgauravarya) April 27, 2017
The terrorists are believed to belong to the terror outfit Jaish-e-Mohammed. It is to be noted that India has been attempting to have the UN declare the JeM chief Masood Azhar a terrorist, a move repeatedly blocked by China at the United Nations Security Council. The attack had similarities with the Uri terror attack on an army camp in September last year when 19 Indian soldiers were martyred. India had carried out surgical strikes in retaliation on September 29, in which 20-50 militants were believed to have been neutralised. The JeM is also suspected to be behind the attack on the Indian Air Force base in Pathankot, in which seven security personnel and one civilian were killed.
There were also subsequent reports of stone pelting at Army personnel close to the attack site. The stone pelting began a few kilometers away from the Army camp in Kupwara where the terror attack took place. The protesters were trying to disturb movement of the Army convoy by pelting stones on the security forces.
The attack comes in a series of violent disturbances in the Valley, with the cycle of protests leading to civilian casualties leading to more protests threatening to engulf the Valley in another summer of violence. In the attempted by-polls this month, there was a large-scale violence in specific regions, with Anantnag witnessing violence and bloodshed. There was also very poor turnout, hovering in single digits in Srinagar. More than three hundred people suffered injuries and around eight men were killed in the middle of retaliatory gunfire and stone-pelting.
