2 soldiers, 1 civilian killed in encounter with terrorists in J&K’s Anantnag

Two soldiers and one civilian were killed during a fierce gunfight between terrorists and security forces in Jammu and Kashmir’s Anantnag district on Saturday.

Three other soldiers were also injured in a gunfight in the Kokernag forest area. In the encounter, Havildar Dipak Kumar Yadav and Lance Naik Praveen Sharma laid down their lives in the line of duty. On the other hand, one of the civilian who got injured on Saturday in a crossfire died in the hospital.

“Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi and All Ranks of the Indian Army salute the supreme sacrifice of the two bravehearts. The Indian Army offers its deepest condolences and stands firm with the bereaved families in this hour of grief,” the Indian Army stated in an official statement.

Earlier, after receiving intelligence input about the presence of terrorists in the area, security forces conducted search and combing operations in the forest area of South Kashmir.

Terrorists attacked the army patrol as they were conducting anti-terror operations in the forest in the Kokernag subdivision.

“Based on specific intelligence input, a joint operation was launched by the Army, Jammu and Kashmir Police, and CRPF today in the general area of Kokernag, Anantnag. Contact was established, and a firefight ensued. Two personnel have been injured and evacuated from the area. Operation is in progress,” the Indian Army’s Chinar Corps said in a post on X.

A day after the gunbattle, security forces resumed their anti-terror operations in the area on Sunday.

Two weeks ago, an Indian soldier was killed, and four others, including a major, were injured as the Army thwarted an attack by Pakistan’s Border Action Team (BAT) along the Line of Control in Kupwara.

Prior to this, four Army personnel and a police officer lost their lives in a Doda district encounter with heavily armed terrorists. The attack was claimed by the ‘Kashmir Tigers,’ a proxy group of the Pakistan-backed Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM).