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Five soldiers were killed, as many others injured, after terrorists attacked an army truck passing through a village in Jammu and Kashmir\u2019s Kathua district on July 8. The attack at Badnota village in the Jammu region was a reminder of a similar attack in Rajouri in which four soldiers were killed in December 2023, marking an uptick in terror attacks on troops in the Union Territory.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
The July 8 attack comes 24 hours after eight people, including six terrorists, were killed in twin encounters in Kulgam district of Kashmir region. The encounters, which began on Saturday, also claimed the lives of two soldiers, including a para-trooper, while another soldier sustained injuries.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
The spike in terror attacks, particularly below the Pir Panjal range in Jammu, has raised concern among security establishments.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
June saw a series of attacks in the region. On June 26, three terrorists were killed during a gunfight with security forces in the Gandoh region of Doda district in Jammu. On June 9, the day of the swearing-in ceremony of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, unidentified terrorists fired upon a bus ferrying pilgrims, resulting in the death of at least 10 people and injuries to 33 others in the Reasi district of the Jammu region.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
The region was rattled by three back-to-back attacks within a span of three days after the Reasi attack. Overall, the attacks in the Reasi, Doda and Kathua districts of Jammu left nine civilians and a CRPF personnel dead, besides leaving 49 others, including seven security personnel injured. Two terrorists were also killed in the Kathua attack.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Lieutenant General BS Jaswal (retd), a former Northern Army commander, told the Hindustan Times<\/i><\/a> that troop density in areas south of the Pir Panjal range had reduced because forces were being pulled out for deployment in the Ladakh sector amid the ongoing standoff with China along the Line of Actual Control.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cThe terrorists want to exploit the void created by the redeployment of forces. Also, the Jammu region is reporting more terror incidents because infiltrators are looking at using ingress routes into the Kashmir valley from this side,\u201d Lieutenant General BS Jaswal<\/a> (retd) was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n When compared with Kashmir Valley, Jammu had been relatively terror-free over the past two decades until 2021, when the region witnessed a spike in terror attacks.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n In February 2021, Jammu and Kashmir police seized<\/a> 15 sticky bombs (magnetic IEDs) in Jammu’s Samba district along the International Border. In June of the same year, in a first-of-its-kind attack in India, low-flying drones dropped IEDs on the Jammu Air Force station.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n I am deeply anguished at the loss of five of our brave Indian Army Soldiers in a terrorist attack in Badnota, Kathua (J&K). <\/p>\n My deepest condolences to the bereaved families, the Nation stands firm with them in this difficult time. The Counter Terrorist operations are underway,\u2026<\/p>\n \u2014 Rajnath Singh (@rajnathsingh) July 9, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n On August 6, 2021 two terrorists were killed in an encounter in the Pangai forests of the Thanamandi area of Rajouri district of Jammu region.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Although Kashmir witnessed a higher number of terrorist-initiated incidents and civilian casualties, the country\u2019s security establishments are concerned that attacks in the Jammu region were fewer yet of high impact, ending up inflicting the maximum damage, according to an Indian Express<\/a> report.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Speaking to India Today <\/i>after the June 9 Reasi attack, Lieutenant General Syed Ata Hasnain (Retd) said the terrorists want to convey a message that while PM Modi has been speaking about his government\u2019s success, he has not got Jammu and Kashmir under control.<\/p>\n<\/div>\nIEDs dropped on Air Force Station in 2021<\/h2>\n
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Jammu attacks fewer, but bloodier<\/h2>\n