SRINAGAR: The soldiers who were declared to have been critically injured in an encounter in Poonch forests have died. The death of JCO had been confirmed only last night, hours after the encounter started.
The encounter had taken place deep inside the Mendhar forests in Nar Khas forest. They received bullets as the operation started. The body of the jawan has been retrieved, however, the body of JCO is yet to be retrieved from the area, an army spokesperson has said.
The reports said the operation is still on. The area is highly mountainous and the forests are dense, making the operation very difficult.
Later in the afternoon, defence spokesman at Jammu said the two slain were soldiers – Riflemen Vikram Singh Negi (26) and Yogambar Singh (27) and their bodies have been recovered. They were both residents of Uttrakhand. He said efforts are on to trace the missing JCO.
The operation was launched to neutralise the militants who killed five soldiers on October 12. Police have claimed that the militants, now confined to a small belt, have been in the forests for three months.
