PirPanchal: Jammu and Kashmir’s Director General of Police (DGP) Dilbagh Singh on Friday revealed brief investigation inputs about the recent militant attack on an army vehicle in Poonch stating that the militants have used natural hide-outs and over 12 foreigners were divided into two groups.
He affirmed the attackers were 12 foreign militants, who are currently active in the PirPanchal region’s Rajouri-Poonch districts and may have infiltrated recently.
However, he said that the attack was carried out with active local support against which a local resident of Gursai village, identified as Nisar Ahmed, was arrested.
“He was in the suspect list as he was an OGW (over ground worker) of terrorists since 1990. He was questioned several times in the past. This time, after corroborating the evidence, he was found involved in providing logistic and other support to terrorists who carried out the Poonch attack,” the DGP said further.
“Nisar’s family is also involved in providing support to terrorists,” he said.
“They had used steel-coated armour-piercing bullets and IEDs to target army vehicle to inflict maximum damage,” DGP told reporters.
DGP who is at the site of the ongoing search operations in Darhal area of Rajouri district told reporters that said the Poonch attack was carried out with active support of locals.
“Such attacks can’t be carried out without local support. The terrorists were provided shelter at one place and then provided transport to carry out the attack at another place. They had done proper recee of the area and despite rain they succeeded to target the army vehicle that was plying with almost zero speed due to blind turn,” he said.
The attackers knew the spot and speed of the vehicle, he added.
On whether terrorists had got weapons through drones, the DGP said that weapons, grenades and cash was air-dropped by drone and the same was collected by Nisar and his family members.
“We are identifying the spot where the drone had dropped the weapons and cash,” he said.
“So far, 200 people were questioned and 12 suspects have been detained and with the arrest of Nisar, the investigation has got a direction and vital leads have been achieved,” he added.
(KNO)
