New Delhi:

Congress MP Rahul Gandhi has paid tribute to the four soldiers killed on Monday in an encounter with terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir’s Doda. “Today, our soldiers were martyred in another terrorist encounter in Jammu and Kashmir. I pay my humble tribute to the martyrs and express my deepest condolences to the bereaved families,” he posted in Hindi on X Tuesday morning.

Mr Gandhi, who is also the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, said the number of such attacks on Indian soldiers in J&K in the past few months is “extremely sad and worrying”.

He also hit out at the government for the “poor condition of Jammu and Kashmir” and said the soldiers there are “bearing the brunt of the BJP’s wrong policies”. The “wrong policies” reference has been seen as an attack on the Modi government over the scrapping of Article 370 in J&K.

“It is the demand of every patriotic Indian that the government should take full responsibility for repeated security lapses,” Mr Gandhi said and called for “strict action” against the terrorists.

आज जम्मू कश्मीर में फिर से एक आतंकी मुठभेड़ में हमारे जवान शहीद हो गए। शहीदों को विनम्र श्रद्धांजलि अर्पित करते हुए शोक संतप्त परिजनों को गहरी संवेदनाएं व्यक्त करता हूं।

एक के बाद एक ऐसी भयानक घटनाएं बेहद दुखद और चिंताजनक है।

लगातार हो रहे ये आतंकी हमले जम्मू कश्मीर की जर्जर…

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) July 16, 2024

However, Mr Gandhi also underlined the need for political unity at this time, and the importance of the opposition supporting the government as it responds to the increased terror threat.

“In this hour of grief, the entire country stands united against terrorism,” he said.

Four soldiers, including an officer, were killed in action in Doda district. The terrorists had attacked a joint operation – of the Army and J&K Police – formed to track them down.

READ | 4 Soldiers Killed In Action In Encounter With Terrorists In J&K’s Doda

Contact was made late Monday night, the Army had said.

The operation is ongoing, NDTV has been told.

Sources told NDTV Defence Minister Rajnath Singh spoke to Army chief General Upendra Dwivedi and took stock of the ground situation and ongoing operation in Doda.

This was the second major encounter in the Jammu region after five soldiers were killed in action in Kathua last week. That attack, in which five were also injured, was a coordinated strike on two trucks – with grenades and armour-piercing bullets, and an American-made assault rifle.

READ | Kathua Terror Attack On 2 Trucks, Armour-Piercing Bullets Used

The attacks, which began in Poonch and Rajouri, have now spread across Jammu, a region that was free from terrorism till a few years ago. In the last 32 months, 48 soldiers have been killed.

Earlier this month Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in Parliament the fight against terrorism in J&K is in its last stage, and that a multi-pronged strategy had been adopted to destroy the remaining network. “Our fight against terrorism in J&K, in a way, is in last stage, last leg. We are moving with a multi-pronged strategy to eliminate the remaining terror network there,” he said.

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Srinagar:

Army vehicles were attacked by terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kathua district, which borders Punjab’s Pathankot, on Monday afternoon. Two soldiers have been injured and have been shifted to hospital for treatment. The initial attack has been fought off and an encounter is underway.

Reinforcements have been rushed in and a search op has been launched to track down the terrorists.

This is the second attack on the Indian Army in the Jammu region in the past 48 hours.

On Sunday an Army camp in Rajouri district was attacked. One soldier was injured.

Today’s attack comes 24 hours after six terrorists were killed across two separate encounters in J&K’s Kulgam district. The encounters, which began on Saturday, also claimed the lives of two soldiers, including a para-trooper, while another soldier sustained injuries, police told NDTV.

The first encounter took place in Modergam village when security forces, comprising the CRPF or Central Reserve Police Force, the Army, and local police, launched a search op based on intelligence about terrorist presence. In the initial exchange of gunfire, a para-trooper was fatally wounded.

READ | After Twin Encounters, Reports Of Firing Near Rajouri Army Camp

The operation escalated into a full-scale assault on a target house where terrorists took shelter. By late Saturday night, security forces destroyed the house and recovered the body of two terrorists.

Simultaneously, another fierce gun battle unfolded in Kulgam’s Frisal area. Drone footage revealed the bodies of four terrorists after a long firefight. One soldier was killed and another injured in this fight.

VIDEO | 4 Terrorists Killed Hid In ‘Bunker’, Entry From Fake Cupboard

The four shot dead in Frisal were identified as Yawar Bashir Dar, Zahid Ahmad Dar, Tawheed Ahmad Rather and Shakeel ah Wani. The two in Madergam were identified as Faisal and Adil.

Para Commando and Lance Naik Pradeep Nain was killed in action in Modergam, while Havaldar Raj Kumar of 1 Rashtriya Rifles was killed in action in the Frisal area.

In a separate incident in the Rajouri district, there were reports of firing near an army camp. One soldier was injured, and although initial reports suggested an attempted overnight terror attack on the Manjakote army camp, the army has yet to confirm these details.

On Sunday, security agency sources said a Pakistan-based operative of the Resistance Front, a unit of the banned Lashkar-e-Taiba, was behind this spike in terror activities in J&K.

READ | Lashkar’s Most-Wanted Terrorist Behind J&K Attacks

Idenitifed as Saifullah Sajid Jatt, from Shangamanga village in Kasur district of Pakistan’s Punjab, the NIA has said he is a “hardcore terrorist” and placed a bounty of Rs 10 lakh on his head.

J&K has witnessed a string of terror attacks over the past couple of months.

Last month, terrorists opened fire at a bus in which pilgrims were travelling. The bus fell into a gorge in Reasi district and nine people were killed. Days later, two armed terrorists entered a village and opened fire. Security forces arrived and, in the gunfight that followed, a CRPF personnel was killed.

The terrorists were shot dead.

Last month three terrorists were killed after a fierce gunfight broke out between terrorists and security forces in the Gandoh area of Doda district in J&K, the police said. These terrorists were believed to have been involved in recent attacks on the Army and the police in the Kashmir Valley.

READ | 3 Terrorists Shot Dead In Gunfight With Security Forces In J&K’s Doda

A huge cache of arms and ammunition, including US-made M4 carbines, were recovered.

“Fight Against Terror In Last Stage”

Last week Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in Parliament the fight against terrorism in J&K is in its last stage, and that a multi-pronged strategy had been adopted to destroy the remaining network.

READ | Fight Against Terrorism In J&K In Last Stage: PM Modi

“Our fight against terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir, in a way, is in last stage, last leg. We are moving with a multi-pronged strategy to eliminate the remaining terror network there,” PM Modi had said.

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