J&K: Terrorists storm Kathua police station, kill policeman and take hostages

Jammu: A policeman has been killed on early today morning after a group of militants attacked a police station in Kathua district of Jammu and Kashmir, police said.

Three CRPF personnel and a civilian has been injured in the attack till now.

Times Now reports that the terrorists are believed to be holding several hostages inside the police station. A report on CNN IBN said that security forces have been rushed to the spot.

The militants attacked the Rajbagh police station in Kathua district in the early hours of Friday.

“Militants used automatic weapons and hurled grenades at the Rajbagh police station in Kathua district today morning. One policeman was killed in the attack and three were injured,” a senior police officer told IANS.

An exchange of fire ensued between security forces and the militants camping inside the police station. As this copy was being typed, television channels reported that a gun battle was at the site of the attack.

Exactly a year back, in March 2014, Kathua had witnessed a similar, audacious terror strike which left three people dead, including an army personnel.

Three militants had arrived in the Indian Army’s combat uniform. They, then stopped a car and opened fire.

NDTV reported on 28 March last year , “At around 5 am, the heavily armed militants allegedly stopped a Mahindra Bolero car on the Jammu-Pathankote highway and fired indiscriminately at the passengers, killing one of them. Three others were wounded.  The militants got into the car and surfaced a little later near at the army’s “Rocket Regiment” camp close to the international border with Pakistan, where they fired at army men. One soldier was killed and two injured.”

Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah, expressed solidarity with those injured in the attack and the kin of the dead.

My thoughts are with those brave security personnel dealing with the Fidayeen attack in Kathua town of Jammu this morning.

— Omar Abdullah (@OmarAbdullah) March 20, 2015

These Fidayeen will have walked across the border last night & launched their attack this morning which is the past pattern as well.

— Omar Abdullah (@OmarAbdullah) March 20, 2015

With inputs from IANS