New Delhi: ‘Kashmir Tigers’, a front of Pakistan-based terror group Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), which claimed responsibility for the attack in Jammu’s Doda this week, has released purported footage of the aftermath of the ambush in which an Army officer and three other soldiers were killed.
The video, being circulated on social media, purportedly shows the terrorists, believed to be of Pakistani origin, trying to behead a dead soldier. The terror group claimed this was in retaliation to soldiers dragging a terrorist’s body in another encounter.
Army sources said they are ascertaining the authenticity of the video.
As reported by ThePrint, the death toll of security forces in the Jammu region between 2021 and 2024 has climbed to 51, including the latest killings in Doda.
While the Nagrota-based 16 Corps had initially said the Doda incident was a joint operation with Jammu and Kashmir Police and that there was an encounter, it was learnt that the deaths took place because of an ambush by terrorists.
The soldiers were following up on an intelligence input about a group of terrorists, it is learnt. They were apparently ambushed on the way back.
The video also shows an AK-47, which the terrorists claim was taken away from the soldiers in the incident.
Sources explained that the Kashmir Tigers is not a separate organisation but a front of the JeM.
In the past too, the JeM has floated names to claim responsibility for attacks and to show that these are being carried out by locals and to escape international scrutiny.
Incidentally, in the past too, terrorists have released videos of ambushes and attacks on soldiers which are recorded on their cell phones and even body cameras.
This year alone, 11 security personnel have lost their lives, including four Army jawans in Doda, five soldiers on 8 July in Kathua, one IAF personnel in May in Poonch, and a CRPF personnel in June.
ThePrint was the first to report in November last year about the troubling trend emerging from the killings in the Jammu division, which had been peaceful for nearly 15 years. The pattern, which was a new terror tactic since 2020, saw security forces either being ambushed as they went about normal operations, or being lured through fake intelligence inputs.
This is an updated version of the report.
(Edited by Tony Rai)