Indian Army foils Pakistani BAT attack, kill Pakistani soldiers

Guwahati, December 31, 2018:

The Indian armed forces foiled a major Pakistani (Border Action Team) BAT attempt to strike a forward post along the Line of Control in Nowgam Sector in the early hours of 30 December 2018.

The intruding soldiers attempted to move by exploiting the thick jungles close to the LoC and were assisted by heavy covering fire of high calibre weapons such as mortars and rocket launchers from the Pakistani posts. The movement was nonetheless detected by the vigilant Indian Army troops deployed along the LoC. Two Pakistani soldiers were killed in the skirmish that ensued all night.

The fire-fight initiated by Pakistan was given strong resistance by Indian Army and the exchange of fire continued throughout the night. Indian troops conducted prolonged search operations in thick jungles and difficult terrain conditions to ascertain the situation, which confirmed elimination of two likely Pakistani soldiers and resulted in recovery of a large cache of warlike stores. The search operations are still underway in the Sector to sanitise the area. It was also reported that a few other intruders managed to escape across the LoC, taking advantage of the Pakistani firing and adverse weather and visibility conditions.

Intruders were wearing combat dresses like Pakistani Regulars and were carrying weapons caches with Pakistani markings. Some intruders were also seen in BSF and old pattern IA dresses as part of deception. They had intruded well-equipped with IEDs, incendiary materials, explosives, and a plethora of arms and ammunition. From the recovery, it was estimated that they intended to carry out a gruesome attack on the Indian Army forward post in Nowgam sector.

Army authorities have applauded the courage and perseverance of the alert troops. The Indian Army's resolve to keep a strict vigil along the LoC and defeat all nefarious designs of Pakistan will continue to remain firm and consistent.