13 killed in twin attacks in Jammu Region
JAMMU; 26, Sep 2013: Three rebels believed to have freshly entered in Jammu and Kashmir, on Thursday stormed a police station and then an Indian army camp in Jammu, killing 10 people.
Director general of police Ashok Prasad said the insurgents wearing Indian army fatigues boarded an auto-rickshaw from Hariya Chuk graveyard in village Jhandi and asked the driver Roshan Lal to take them to the Indian army camp at Hiranagar.
Unable to locate the camp, the rebels first hurled grenades and then stormed the police station - killing four officials. During the exchange of fire, a nearby PCO owner were also killed.
The rebels then hijacked a truck after killing its cleaner, Mohammad Feroz, a resident of Kashmir valley. Soon after the driver stopped the vehicle outside the camp of cavalry armoured unit at Samba, 15km from the police station, the rebels fired at jawans guarding the gate.
Once inside the premises, they entered the officers' mess, killing Lt Col Bikramjeet Singh, the second-in-command of the unit and three Indian troopers; and seriously injuring the unit's commanding officer Col A Uthaiah, who has been admitted to the ICU of a Indian military hospital in Pathankot.
As per military sources, "After a gunfight lasting several hours, all three rebels, aged between 16 and 19, were killed by commandos and quick action teams."
Television reports showed tanks and choppers moving inside the camp to hunt the attackers.
The other deceased army personnel killed in the attack on the Samba camp have been identified as Sepoys Kiran Kumar Reddy, MS Rao and Daya Singh.
The injured have been identified as commanding officer of the unit, Col Avin Achien and Sepoy Inder Singh, a defence spokesman said.
Six persons killed in attack on a police station in Hiranagar of Kathua district have been identified as ASI Rattan Singh, Selection grade constable Kuldeep Singh, Constable Shiv Kumar, Special police officer Mukesh Kumar and shopkeepers Suresh Kumar and Firdous Ahmed, police officials said.
Those injured in the attack include ASI Ganga Ram, Constable Rattan Chand and Auto-rickshaw driver Roshan Lal, they added.
A caller identifying himself as the spokesman of Shohada Brigade (Martyrs' Brigade), believed to be an offshoot of Lashkar-e-Taiba, told PTI on phone that the group carried out the twin attacks.
Most Indians believe the attacks were aimed at derailing the proposed talks between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Pakistan counterpart Nawaz Sharif.
Indian Home minister Sushilkumar Shinde said the rebels had come from across the border this morning and carried out the audacious attack.
Such acts won't derail peace efforts, says Indian PM
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday condemned the twin attacks in Jammu and said such acts would not succeed in "derailing the efforts to find a resolution to all problems through dialogue".
"This is one more in a series of provocations and barbaric actions by the enemies of peace," Singh said in a statement, en route to the US to attend the UN General Assembly session on the sidelines of which he will meet his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif on Sunday for talks.
"We are firmly resolved to combat and defeat the insurgent menace that continues to receive encouragement and reinforcement from across the border," he said.
Pakistan also condemned the attack, saying "Insurgency is a pernicious evil and Pakistan has been its foremost victim."
A statement by Pakistan High Commission said, "We are committed to leaving no stone unturned to eliminate the spectre of insurgent violence from our society and our region."
Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah said the attacks were aimed at derailing the Singh-Sharif dialogue.
He told a news channel the two countries will be playing into the hands of the miltants if they call off peace talks because of this attack.
"Given what we have seen over the past 20 years, I would speculate that this group had infiltrated within last 24 hours. I doubt that they had been there any longer than that," he said.
"We do know that from time to time, (the) forces inimical to dialogue have sought to derail the process even though the Pakistan government has thrown its weight behind such a process," he said.
Director general of police Ashok Prasad said the insurgents wearing Indian army fatigues boarded an auto-rickshaw from Hariya Chuk graveyard in village Jhandi and asked the driver Roshan Lal to take them to the Indian army camp at Hiranagar.
Unable to locate the camp, the rebels first hurled grenades and then stormed the police station - killing four officials. During the exchange of fire, a nearby PCO owner were also killed.
The rebels then hijacked a truck after killing its cleaner, Mohammad Feroz, a resident of Kashmir valley. Soon after the driver stopped the vehicle outside the camp of cavalry armoured unit at Samba, 15km from the police station, the rebels fired at jawans guarding the gate.
Once inside the premises, they entered the officers' mess, killing Lt Col Bikramjeet Singh, the second-in-command of the unit and three Indian troopers; and seriously injuring the unit's commanding officer Col A Uthaiah, who has been admitted to the ICU of a Indian military hospital in Pathankot.
As per military sources, "After a gunfight lasting several hours, all three rebels, aged between 16 and 19, were killed by commandos and quick action teams."
Television reports showed tanks and choppers moving inside the camp to hunt the attackers.
The other deceased army personnel killed in the attack on the Samba camp have been identified as Sepoys Kiran Kumar Reddy, MS Rao and Daya Singh.
The injured have been identified as commanding officer of the unit, Col Avin Achien and Sepoy Inder Singh, a defence spokesman said.
Six persons killed in attack on a police station in Hiranagar of Kathua district have been identified as ASI Rattan Singh, Selection grade constable Kuldeep Singh, Constable Shiv Kumar, Special police officer Mukesh Kumar and shopkeepers Suresh Kumar and Firdous Ahmed, police officials said.
Those injured in the attack include ASI Ganga Ram, Constable Rattan Chand and Auto-rickshaw driver Roshan Lal, they added.
A caller identifying himself as the spokesman of Shohada Brigade (Martyrs' Brigade), believed to be an offshoot of Lashkar-e-Taiba, told PTI on phone that the group carried out the twin attacks.
Most Indians believe the attacks were aimed at derailing the proposed talks between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Pakistan counterpart Nawaz Sharif.
Indian Home minister Sushilkumar Shinde said the rebels had come from across the border this morning and carried out the audacious attack.
Such acts won't derail peace efforts, says Indian PM
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday condemned the twin attacks in Jammu and said such acts would not succeed in "derailing the efforts to find a resolution to all problems through dialogue".
"This is one more in a series of provocations and barbaric actions by the enemies of peace," Singh said in a statement, en route to the US to attend the UN General Assembly session on the sidelines of which he will meet his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif on Sunday for talks.
"We are firmly resolved to combat and defeat the insurgent menace that continues to receive encouragement and reinforcement from across the border," he said.
Pakistan also condemned the attack, saying "Insurgency is a pernicious evil and Pakistan has been its foremost victim."
A statement by Pakistan High Commission said, "We are committed to leaving no stone unturned to eliminate the spectre of insurgent violence from our society and our region."
Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah said the attacks were aimed at derailing the Singh-Sharif dialogue.
He told a news channel the two countries will be playing into the hands of the miltants if they call off peace talks because of this attack.
"Given what we have seen over the past 20 years, I would speculate that this group had infiltrated within last 24 hours. I doubt that they had been there any longer than that," he said.
"We do know that from time to time, (the) forces inimical to dialogue have sought to derail the process even though the Pakistan government has thrown its weight behind such a process," he said.
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