Fayaz Bukhari
SRINAGAR, Mar 8: An Army Colonel of counter insurgency Kilo Force had close shave tonight in North Kashmir’s Rafiabad forests when militants attacked his vehicles. Army has launched a massive operation against the militants responsible for the attack.
A senior Army officer told Excelsior that militants hurled grenades and fired indiscriminately on the vehicle of an Army Colonel of a Rashtriya Rifles unit in Kuhsipora area of North Kashmir’s Rafiabad.
The Rakhshak vehicle of the Colonel received bullets but the Colonel survived the militant bid on his life. The Army fired back and militants fled under the cover of darkness, taking advantage of forest area.
Sources said that the Colonel had gone to visit one of his companies that is based deep in the forests and was returning to his headquarter at around 9:15 p.m. when he was fired upon near Kushipora village of Rafiabad. “Militants had taken positions on a hillock overlooking the road for the attack on the Army officer”, sources added.
“It was a well planned attack in which the Army officer survived”, the Army officer said adding that more troops were rushed to the spot and a part of forest area was cordoned off. He, however, said that since it is a forest area searches will be conducted in the morning.
This is after a long time that militants have targeted a senior Army officer in Kashmir. Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) militant outfit has claimed responsibility for the attack. Its spokesman has called some local newspapers claiming responsibility for the attack on an Army officer.
In the meantime, militants tonight killed 85-year old man, father of a People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Sarpanch of a village Dogripora in South Kashmir’s Awantipora area. Police and Army have launched searches in the area to nab the militants responsible for the killing of the man.
The Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Police South Kashmir, Vijay Kumar, told Excelsior that Ghulam Mohammad Dar son of Uba Dar was killed by unknown militants this evening in his village. The militants fled after firing at him from close range. Dar was left in a pool of blood and died on the spot.
Sources said that one of Dar’s relative, Waseem, was a militant of Hizbul Mujahideen who was killed in a security forces operation in Pulwama in January this year while his son is a Sarpanch and is a leader of PDP.
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