Operation resumes in Kathua to track down terrorists; one security person injured

Jammu: The security forces on Thursday morning resumed a search operation to track down terrorists hiding in a forest in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kathua district, where one security person suffered a minor injury.

The joint action by the Special Operations Group (SOG) of J-K Police and other security forces was launched at Kahog village in Billawar on Wednesday evening, leading to an encounter, officials said.

“The search operation to track down the hiding terrorists has been resumed after a night-long cordon,” a senior security official said.

The searches are being conducted in the Dhanu Parole-Kamadh nallah area. Additional forces have been called in, along with aerial surveillance, to pin down the terrorists hiding in the dense forest, they said.

“Despite darkness, thick vegetation and treacherous terrain, the SOG is relentlessly engaging the terrorists. Teams of the CRPF are also participating in the joint operation,” Bhim Sen Tuti, IGP, Jammu Zone, said in a post on X.

The gunfight broke out at Kahog village on Wednesday evening after security forces launched a search operation based on information about the presence of two to three terrorists in the area, the officials said.

During the exchange of fire, one security person suffered a minor injury after a bullet hit his leg. He has been hospitalised, they said.

“The SOG has engaged the terrorists in the forest area of Kamadh nallah, Kathua,” the IGP said in another post on X.

According to officials, the firing between the two sides lasted for more than an hour before the guns fell silent. It was not immediately known if any terrorist was hit in the gunfight, the officials said.

There are also reports of the movement of three groups of infiltrating terrorists in the region.

The Army, the BSF, police and the CRPF are continuously conducting search operations, identifying border dwellers, and intensifying patrols along the International Border in Samba and Kathua districts and the adjoining areas of Punjab for the past one month, the officials said.

A multi-tier security grid comprising the BSF, border police, and Village Defence Guards (VDGs) has been put on alert ahead of the Republic Day on January 26.

The Kathua district has witnessed several encounters between security forces and terrorists over the past two years, resulting in the killings of 16 people – 11 security personnel and five terrorists.

While seven security personnel and two militants were killed in 2024 when terrorists revived their activities in the district after more than a decade, seven persons – four security men and three terrorists – were killed in 2023, the officials said.

In addition, four civilians died under mysterious circumstances, with locals suspecting the involvement of terrorists in their killings.