Jammu, 17 September (H.S.): Two terrorists suspected to be affiliated with the Pakistan-based proscribed outfit Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) were killed, and an alleged over-ground worker was detained in a remote high-altitude area in Jammu and Kashmir's Udhampur district, officials said on Thursday.

The joint operation by the Army, police and CRPF was conducted in the dense Brattal Sohan and Khubban forests of Majalta bordering Kathua district amid heavy rain, they said.

Army confirmed the killing of two terrorists in the operation.

In a joint intelligence-based operation during the intervening night of September 16-17, confirmed inputs indicated the presence of terrorists in the general area of Brattal, Udhampur.

Despite hostile weather, difficult terrain and poor visibility, troops of White Knight Corps, Police and CRPF launched a targeted counter-terrorism operation, resulting in the neutralisation of two terrorists.

The operation is still in progress, with search and surveillance continuing in the area. Security forces remain deployed to track and neutralise any remaining threat, the Jammu-based White Knight Corps said in a post on X.

The officials said police and security forces were looking for a terrorist group after its movement was noticed in the forested area last week.

The security forces cordoned off a particular area around 9 pm on Wednesday following fresh inputs, leading to the initial contact.

A few rounds of firing and blasts were heard shortly after the operation began, the officials said, adding that the area, however, remained largely quiet through the night before the lull ended on Thursday morning, when the terrorists opened heavy fire in an attempt to break the cordon.

Reinforcements were rushed to the area, and the search operation was continuing when the last reports were received, they said.

The officials said both the slain terrorists are believed to be Pakistani nationals, adding that a US-made M4 carbine and an AK assault rifle, along with a large quantity of ammunition, were recovered from the scene of the gunfight.

A local youth, believed to be an over-ground worker (OGW), has been detained for questioning, they said.

It was the second major encounter in Udhampur district this year. In February, two Pakistani terrorists, including a self-styled commander – Rubani alias Abu Mavia, who was active in the area for the past several years – were killed in the Ramnagar forests.

Over the past several years, the difficult mountain terrain of the Kathua-Udhampur-Doda belt was used by JeM terrorists to establish hideouts and evade security forces after infiltrating from across the border.

However, security forces have dismantled these networks to deny terrorists safe passage and shelter in the upper reaches, the officials said.

They said the relentless operations have resulted in the elimination of a large number of active terrorists operating in the region, many of them identified as Pakistani nationals.

Security agencies are also maintaining heightened surveillance and launching searches in remote forest areas based on intelligence inputs and assessments of possible terrorist movement.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Krishan Kumar