Nasir Ahmad, a villager who was detained following the April 20 ambush that killed five soldiers, confessed to investigators he had provided four terrorists with shelter and logistical support for two months prior to the deadly attack on a military truck at Bhata Dhurian in Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir’s Jammu division.
He is a local resident and one of the 60 people held for questioning. It was unable to determine if he is an “overground worker,” a euphemism for radicalised individuals who carry out terrorist attacks or work for terrorist organisations and revert back to their regular lives or if he assisted the terrorists under coercion.
According to a source, “Some of the detainees were released after questioning.” The vehicle transporting six troops and supplies including food and fruit from the Bhimber Gali military camp to Sangiote hamlet for an Iftar by the Rashtriya Rifles was ambushed by the terrorists when they were sheltering behind a culvert.
The automobile was hit with grenades and gunshots, turning it into a blaze as it wound through blinding rain on a lonely road. A fellow soldier was injured and five others were martyred in the ghastly assault. The four-wheeler had more than 50 bullet holes, per sources.
The truck was purportedly immobilised and the driver was killed by a sniper. “The terrorists used steel-coated bullets that can penetrate armour. Before fleeing, the terrorists stole the soldiers’ arms and ammunition,” a source stated.
No terrorist has been arrested so far. For the previous six days, security personnel have been searching the area with metal detectors, sniffer dogs, and aerial monitoring using helicopters and drones.
The search is being conducted throughout 12 zones in the neighbouring mountainous districts of Poonch and Rajouri, which are filled with dense woods, deep canyons, and undiscovered caverns. Due to the possibility that terrorists may have placed homemade landmines in the trees, the search crews are being extremely cautious.
Lt Gen Upendra Dwivedi, the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief (GOC-in-C) of Northern Command, paid a visit to the two districts near the Pakistani border on Wednesday to assess the search.
This was his second visit in less than a week. The attack has been attributed to the outlawed People’s Anti-Fascist Front (PAFF), a division of Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM).