The Indian Army’s artillery assault on terror launch pads at Dudhnial facing the Keran sector across the road of Control (LoC) on April 10 killed eight terrorists and 15 Pakistan Army soldiers, two people within the security establishment told Hindustan Times.
it had been a message to Pakistan, one among them said, that nothing goes unpunished. On the banks of Kishanganga river, Dudhnial was targeted to retaliate to ceasefire violations by Pakistan. it had been from this mountain town that the five terrorists neutralised by the Indian Army Special Forces within the Keran sector on April 5 had been launched.
Out of 5 terrorists killed, three belonged to Jammu and Kashmir and therefore the other two had trained with Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), people conversant in the event said. Efforts to determine their identity are still on. Pakistan Army has confirmed that Indian Army fired in Sharda, Dudhnial and Shahkot sectors along the LoC, the de facto border.
But it had claimed that only four civilians including a 15- year- old girl sustained serious injuries. Islamabad also blamed the Indian Army of 708 ceasefire violations in 2020, that it said, killed two civilians and injured another 42.
The Pakistan Army spokesperson also said the Pakistan Army countered the Indian assault by targeting Indian Army posts along the LoC with matching weapon calibre or just put artillery guns and heavy mortars. This, consistent with Indian intelligence reports, was an attempt to camouflage the extent of the casualties on the Pakistani side.
consistent with these intelligence reports, 15 Pakistan army troopers were killed along side eight terrorists on April 10 when the military hit targets within the Keran sector using long-range ammunition. Some fatal accident , mostly shops where food and logistics supplies were stored, within the Dudhnial area have also been reported.
Pakistan watchers say that Indian Army had no option but to focus on the launch pads as nearly 160 terrorists of mixed tanzeems—Lashkar-e-Tayyiba, Jaish e Mohammed and Hizbul Mujahideen — were waiting within the area to infiltrate into Kashmir. things is not any different in locations south of Pir Panjal in Rajouri and Jammu sector where intelligence reports pointed to the presence of 70 Jaish terrorists expecting a chance to cross into India.
A senior intelligence official told HT that it had been not a coincidence that violations of ceasefire are being reported from Balakote and Mendhar sectors, firing mortars along LoC. “The situation along the LoC is extremely hot immediately as we speak,” he said. Terrorists often sneak into Jammu and Kashmir under cover fire from the Pakistani army.
Intelligence agencies have estimated that there are a complete of about 242 terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir. consistent with Kashmir experts, past experience shows that the instant this number crosses 300, there'll be a spike in violence and targeted attacks on security forces and political leaders who speak out against Pakistan.
[Source: Hindustan Times]