SRINAGAR: The Army has foiled an attempt by militants to cross the Line of Control and sneak into this side of Kashmir.
A Defence Spokesman told FreePress that an infiltration bid was foiled in the Keran sector in the border district of Kupwara in the north.
“We detected some movement at around 3 a.m near Ustaad and Manjeet posts. We challenged them and they retaliated,” he said. The ‘4 Kumaon’ unit of the army is engaged in the gunfight.
The spokesman said that there have been casualties on the militants’ side. But he said no bodies have been recovered so far due to bad weather.
There has been a surge in incidents of firing at the LoC that divides Kashmir between India and Pakistan.
The two south Asian nuclear rivals, both of which rule Kashmir in parts but claim it in full, have been accusing each other of frequent violation of a ceasefire agreement signed a decade ago.
Recently on Aug 6, five Indian soldiers were killed when, according to the Indian army, Pakistani troops sneaked into Poonch region and ambushed an army patrol before escaping. Islamabad has denied the charges, and said that Indian firing had killed one of their civilians.
The Indian army says it killed four infiltrators in the Keran sector, the area of today’s incident, on August 14 and 15.
With the killings, it said, the number of militants killed in the past two months was 28, which included a 55-year-old rebel.
