 "Army soldiers near the house where militants were hiding during an encounter in Ratnipora area of Pulwama district of south Kashmir, Tuesday, Feb 12, 2019. (Representative Photo, Credit: PTI)")
An encounter broke out on Thursday morning between terrorists and security forces in the Nader area of Tral, in Jammu and Kashmir’s Awantipora, police said.
According to sources, two terrorists are likely to be trapped amid ongoing gunfight with the forces.
The Jammu and Kashmir Police, in an update on their official X handle, said an encounter had started and further details would follow.
“Encounter has started at Nader, Tral area of Awantipora. Police and security forces are on the job. Further details shall follow,” the Kashmir Police posted on X.
This fresh encounter comes two days after three Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists were killed in an operation in Shopian, South Kashmir, on Tuesday. Two of them have been identified.
The terrorists were killed in the Shukroo forest area of Keller in Shopian district. During ‘Operation Keller’, the Indian Army also recovered a large cache of weapons and ammunition.
A video shows rifles, grenades, bullets, backpacks, and wallets recovered from the slain terrorists.
Operation Keller is part of the Indian Army’s ongoing anti-terror operations, alongside the larger Operation Sindoor.
Operation Sindoor and rising tensions
On May 8, Indian forces carried out precision strikes on terror camps in Pakistan, killing top leaders of groups like Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Taiba. Strikes hit nine locations across Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, including key LeT bases in Bahawalpur and Muridke.
These actions increased tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbours. Pakistan responded with several failed missile and drone attacks, which were successfully blocked by Indian forces.
India’s retaliation to Pakistan
In response to Pakistan’s provocations, the Indian Air Force (IAF) struck back, destroying important military targets like airbases and radar stations. The IAF also managed to jam Pakistan’s Chinese-made air defence systems during the operation.