2 soldiers killed, 3 injured as gunfight rages in south Kashmir's Kokernag forests

Two army soldiers were killed, and three others injured in a fierce gun battle with terrorists in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district on August 10. The gunfight, which broke out in the afternoon is still ongoing and progress through the night, defense officials said.

Two civilians have also sustained bullet wounds in the firefight in the forest area of Gagar-Mandu in Kokernag town of the district. The gunfight comes barely a few days before the India’s Independence Day.

The operation is ongoing at above 10000 feet high altitude, with thick undergrowth, large boulders, Nallahs, and re-entrants that pose serious challenges to the security forces, a defense spokesman said.

“But the forces are moving deliberately and are in the process of hunting down the terrorists. Operations will progress through the night,” he added. Authorities have stepped up security across Jammu and Kashmir to thwart any terror activities ahead of Independence Day celebrated on August 15.

Earlier, a joint team of police, Army, and CRPF after receiving inputs about the presence of terrorists launched a search operation in the forest area of Gagar-Mandu and adjoining areas, a police official said.

“As the security forces intensified searches towards the suspected spot, terrorists hiding in forest area fired upon the forces, which led to an encounter. During the initial exchange of fire, at least five soldiers were injured and two of them later succumbed to bullet wounds,” he added.

The evacuation of the injured soldiers took enough time as the nearest motorable area Ahlan is around 20 km from the gunfight site, according to the official.

“Based on specific intelligence input, a Joint Operation was launched by #IndianArmy, @JmuKmrPolice & @crpf_srinagar in the general area of Kokernag, Anantnag. Contact was established and a firefight ensued. Operation is still in progress,” the Army posted on X.

Notably, in September last year, two army officers, a police officer, and two terrorists were killed in a gunfight in the Kokernag forest area. This is the first gun battle in the area after September last year.

‘Mountainous area pose serious operational challenges’

It is a challenging operation considering the area's tough terrain and rocky formations. it has no road connectivity or mobile network.

Through human and electronic means on August 5, it was confirmed that terrorists responsible for terror acts in the Doda in July had sneaked across the Kishtwar range. They further sneaked into the Kapran Garol area in south Kashmir, a defense spokesman said in a statement.

“Rashtriya Rifles and J&K police have ever since relentlessly tracked these terrorists and precise operations were launched on the night of 09 & 10 Aug in the mountains, where these terrorists were reportedly holed up,” the spokesman added.

The suspicious movement was observed on August 10 afternoon. “On challenging the terrorists, they responded with indiscriminate, desperate, and reckless firing leading to an encounter,” according to the spokesman.