Jammu: Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorists stormed an Army camp on the outskirts of Jammu city on Saturday, killing two junior commissioned officers (JCOs) and injuring nine others, including a Major and a daughter of an Army officer. Two terrorists involved in the attack have been gunned down, officials said.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Abdul Rehman Veeri informed the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly that Subedar Madanlal Chowdhary and Subedar Mohammed Ashraf Mir were killed in the attack by a group of militants.
Jammu-based Army PRO Lt Col Devender Anand said that after a brief exchange of fire with sentry on the periphery early in on Saturday morning, some terrorists entered the family accommodation complex from the rear.
The Army has isolated the remaining terrorists and was going from room to room to pin them down inside the residential building. Officials said that all the families have been evacuated and there is no hostage situation.
"The quick response teams have cordoned off the area and isolated the terrorists, who are holed up in a few houses (inside the camp)," the officer said.
"Due to the presence of women and children in the housing colony, the operations had to be carried out cautiously to minimise the casualties," he said.
The Major has been airlifted to an Udhampur hospital where his condition was stated to be critical, Army officials said.
Army helicopters and drones have been pressed into service to ascertain the exact location of the terrorists, officials said.
While there was no action around the main entrance and vehicles were moving along the Jammu-Lakhanpur bypass in front of the camp, Army personnel in bullet-proof vehicles were engaged in the operation to rescue people from the family quarters in the rear side of the base.
Contingents of para-military CRPF and police personnel have been posted outside the boundary wall and were keeping curious onlookers at bay to avoid civilian casualties.
Generators and searchlights were brought to the camp, apparently for a night assault.
Though the exact number of militants was not known, officials said preliminary estimates suggested that there could be three to four of them inside the camp.
Inspector General of Police (Jammu) S D Singh Jamwal told reporters here that "around 4:55 am suspicious movement was noticed by the sentry and his bunker was fired upon. The fire was retaliated. The number of militants is not known. They have been cornered in one of the family quarters."
Soon after the attack, reinforcements of the Army's special forces and special operations group (SOG) rushed to the spot and cordoned off the area amid a fierce gunfight, security official said.
Schools in a five-kilometre radius around the camp have been closed by the authorities as a precautionary measure. A high alert has been sounded in Jammu and security beefed up in and around the city.
Intelligence inputs had warned of an attack on an Army or security establishment by Jaish-e-Mohammed in view of the death anniversary of Afzal Guru who was hanged on February 9, 2013.
Those injured included an Army officer, Havaldar Abdul Hamid, Lance Naik Bahadur Singh and the daughter of slain Subedar Chowdhary, the minister earlier told the House which witnessed protests by BJP members who raised anti-Pakistan slogans.
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