india

Updated: Dec 31, 2018 23:03 IST

Two intruders were killed as a Pakistani Border Action Team (BAT)’s attempt to attack Indian posts from across the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir’s Naugam sector was foiled, the army said on Monday.

BAT is a special Pakistani military unit, which includes commandos from the country’s Special Services Group (SSG) and volunteers from terrorist groups like the Lashkar-e-Taiba. It has been blamed for many attacks and mutilations of Indian soldiers along the de facto India-Pakistan border in Jammu and Kashmir – the LOC.

At least one of the two intruders, Naik Anwar, belonged to the SSG, who was a part of five to six-member BAT. Anwar’s funeral prayers were held at SSG’s Cherat base in Pakistan, said an Indian Army officer on condition of anonymity. The Army said the attack was foiled after a suspicious movement was noticed about 300 to 500 m inside the LoC on Sunday evening hen Pakistani troops fired at Indian posts. This was the fourth attack on Indian posts along the LoC over the last fortnight, a second Army officer said. Attempts to storm Indian positions along the LoC border were earlier made at Mendhar, Poonch, and Tangdhar. “We were able to thwart all four attacks.”

Two Pakistani officers were wounded when the Indian Army retaliated to cross-border firing around a fortnight back. “Pakistan has been trying to avenge the injury of its two officers,” said a third Indian Army officer.

The attack was thwarted two months after three Indian soldiers were killed when BAT, which conducts assaults to dominate the LoC, ambushed an Indian Army patrol near the de facto border in J&K’s Rajouri district on October 21. Two BAT members were killed when the Indian side retaliated.

In a statement, the army said the Indian troops “engaged and neutralised the intruders, thus eliminated a likely treacherous attack”. The Army said the intruders wore combat uniforms like regular Pakistani soldiers do and carried “stores” with Pakistani markings and took advantage of the thick forests close to the LoC. “Some intruders were also seen in the BSF [Border Security Force] and old pattern IA [Indian Army] dresses as part of a deception. They had intruded well-equipped with IEDs [improvised explosive devices], incendiary materials, explosives...,” the statement said. “Our troops conducted prolonged search operations in thick jungles and difficult terrain conditions to ascertain the situation, which confirmed the elimination of two likely Pakistani soldiers and resulted in the recovery of a large cache of warlike stores.” It added some intruders managed to escape.