A vehicle carrying five Army soldiers was fired upon by “unidentified terrorists.” They “took advantage of heavy rain and low visibility in the area” on Thursday afternoon in Poonch district of J&K. This is according to a statement from the Udhampur-based Northern Command.
“The vehicle caught fire, due to likely use of grenades by terrorists,” it claimed. Around three o’clock in the afternoon, the incident happened. An Army vehicle travelled through the Rajouri sector between Bhimber Gali and Poonch.
Despite the fact that this update wasn’t released until 6.45 p.m., the Army had previously stated that the truck “caught fire” and caused the casualties.
The deceased have been identified as L/Nk Debashish Baswal from Odisha. Hav Mandeep Singh, L/Nk Kulwant Singh, Sep Harkrishan Singh, and Sep Sewak Singh from Punjab.
The car was a part of a two- or three-car convoy. Military officials claim that the strike was most likely a “planned ambush”. “The terrorists prepared an ambush after scouting the region beforehand”. According to an official, they fired at one of the cars, which hit the diesel tank and set it on fire. The distance between the other vehicles and the one that was attacked is not currently obvious.
Possible reasons for the Poonch Attack:
The incident occurs as the government and military leadership are debating a plan to remove Rashtriya Rifles soldiers from the Valley’s interior. After this CRPF will be therefore allowed to fill the void.
There has already been a partial reduction in the number of personnel in this area. This is as a result of an RR sector moving earlier to eastern Ladakh, according to sources.
Although the counter-insurgency grid in the Valley is strong, infiltration attempts have occurred in regions south of the Pir Panjal range, according to Army chief General Manoj Pande, who spoke in January. The incident happened in the Rajouri sector, which is south of the Pir Panjal range.
The attack on Thursday takes place one week after Union Home Minister Amit Shah also evaluated the security situation in J&K on April 13. He also discussed the preparations for the G20 meeting. It will also take place in Srinagar in May. He urged all organisations to coordinate their efforts to further ensure the success of the occasion.
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