Pampore terrorists were prepared for a long battle: CRPF

CRPF officers believe that the two militants who attacked the convoy of the paramilitary force on Saturday were prepared for a long battle, judging by the amount of ammunition they had.

The two militants ambushed the convoy on Saturday in Pampore, Jammu and Kashmir, killing eight CRPF personnel. Though officers speculate that they might have planned to continue firing from a building nearby, the two militants were shot dead within two minutes of the ambush, says The Indian Express.

CRPF DG K Durga Prasad said: "The terrorists were carrying 11 AK-47 magazines and seven grenades... Perhaps they wanted to make an escape to some structure nearby and then prolong the fight. Thankfully, all our men were armed as they were returning from target practice and the terrorists were neutralised even before they could lob a grenade."

A Kashmir-based senior CRPF officer said they believed the terrorists planned to retreat to a nearby mosque and continue to shoot.

He said: "Had the terrorists not been neutralised and entered the mosque, it could have been disastrous. It would have been very difficult to even retaliate properly in that situation, and the aftermath of neutralising the terrorists could have further flared up sentiments in the Valley."

The Lashkar-e-Toiba has taken responsibility for the attack. The CRPF believes that the attackers were not local militants.

"They had shaved their bodies, a ritual followed by fidayeen attackers," said Prasad. "Their appearance betrays they were not local militants. They seem to have infiltrated and then launched an attack."

The CRPF believes that the terrorists had infiltrated the border a few days ago, and possibly got to the attack area with the help of other terrorists or locals. This is because there were no GPS sets found with their bodies.

Though the seven unexploded grenades they were carrying had their markings removed, CRPF sources said they seemed similar to those issued by the Pakistan Army.

The terrorists attacked the CRPF convoy as it took a turn on a perpendicular bend on the highway, slowing down to about 3 kmph. The CRPF personnel shot back from both the bus and the armoured vehicle in the road opening party.

"The terrorists came from the opposite direction and in the first burst shot at the driver and deflated the bus tyres. They then tried to storm the bus, but were stopped due to strong retaliation from our men," said a senior CRPF officer.

Prasad said: "As yet, there is no evidence of any lapse on part of the force. But we are examining if all standard operating procedures were followed and whether we need to revise the existing SOPs."