Jammu, Jan 22 (NationPress) After a hiatus of four days following the initial gunfight in Singhpora village, situated in the Chatroo region of Jammu and Kashmir's Kishtwar district, a new confrontation erupted at the same site on Thursday between the combined security forces and the terrorists.

According to officials, the renewed firing exchanges began early this morning in the village as the joint forces engaged the hiding terrorists in armed conflict.

No signs of the concealed terrorists had been detected in the area until today, following the incident on Sunday when one Army paratrooper lost his life and seven others sustained injuries during the first engagement.

“Intense firing exchanges are currently taking place in the area,” the officials reported.

Multiple teams from the Army, police, and paramilitary units, aided by drones and sniffer dogs, have been scouring the vicinity for the past four days while enforcing a strict security perimeter to prevent the terrorists from escaping.

A group consisting of two to three terrorists, reportedly linked to the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), is believed to be trapped in the vicinity.

This encounter represents the fourth clash between security forces and terrorists in the Jammu region this year.

On January 18, acting on specific intelligence, joint forces surrounded Singhpora village, and during the subsequent cordon and search operation, the terrorists opened fire, resulting in the death of one paratrooper and injuries to seven additional soldiers.

Despite ongoing fortified anti-terror operations in the area, the terrorists managed to remain elusive for the past four days until the joint forces successfully located them.

Prior encounters took place in the Kahog and Najote forests in the Billawar area of Kathua district on January 7 and 13, respectively.

On December 15 of last year, a police officer was killed during an encounter with terrorists in Soan village, located in the Majalta area of Udhampur district.

The terrorists took advantage of thick foliage and darkness to escape.

These confrontations followed a significant counter-terror operation initiated in the forest areas of the Jammu region in December last year aimed at flushing out nearly three dozen terrorists.

Operations have been further escalated in preparation for Republic Day celebrations, amid intelligence reports suggesting attempts by Pakistan-based handlers to infiltrate additional terrorists into the region, officials noted.

The hilly districts of the Jammu division, including Kathua, Poonch, Rajouri, Kishtwar, Doda, Udhampur, and Reasi, have been under close surveillance by security forces due to intelligence indicating the movement of Pakistani terrorists in the densely forested mountainous terrain of these areas.

Joint forces have frequently engaged terrorists in Kathua, Udhampur, and other districts through sustained encounters; however, the terrorists have often evaded capture, utilizing the cover of dense forests and nighttime darkness.

During a high-level security review meeting regarding Jammu and Kashmir on January 8, chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah in New Delhi, the presence of terrorists in the hilly districts of the Jammu division was extensively discussed.

HM Shah issued clear directives for coordinated, sustained, and intelligence-backed operations to eliminate terrorists from mountainous areas and ensure zero infiltration across the Line of Control (LoC) and the International Border (IB) in Jammu and Kashmir.

The LoC stretches 740 km, while the IB covers 240 km in Jammu and Kashmir. The Army is responsible for guarding the LoC, while the Border Security Force (BSF) secures the IB. The LoC is located in Baramulla, Kupwara, and Bandipora districts of the Valley and partly in Jammu district. The IB is found in Samba, Kathua, and Jammu districts of the Jammu division.