In the first attempt at infiltration after the ceasefire came into effect on November 26, seven Pakistan-based militants crossed the LoC in the early hours of today, official sources said. Of the seven militants, five were killed while the other two fled, they added.The group sneaked into the border area of Balakote in Poonch district around 4.30 am and walked straight into an area that had been cordoned off by Army troops. When the troops challenged them, the militants opened fire and threw grenades randomly at them, the sources said. The troops retaliated, and in the ensuing exchange of fire, which lasted a few hours, five of the militants were gunned down, the sources added. The other two, however, managed to flee.Sources said the two militants who escaped had been injured and blood stains were seen leading towards the LoC. Officials are not ruling out the possibility of their having exfiltrated to Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, they added.Five AK rifles, 23 AK magazines, 318 rounds, 21 grenades, nine UBGL grenades, three pistols, five improvised explosive devices, three radio sets, a large quantity of medicines and incriminating documents were recovered from the slain militants, the sources said.Today’s incident comes just after reports collated by the National Security Council Secretariat with inputs from RAW, IB, military intelligence and the BSF said that there had been a dip in infiltration attempts across the LoC.
