Poonch/Jammu: Residents of a village in Poonch on Monday organised a prayer meeting for the five soldiers who were killed after their truck, carrying fruits and vegetables for Iftar, was attacked by terrorists.
The villagers even celebrated the Eid-ul-Fitr in a low-key manner.
The prayer meeting was organised at Sanghiote, where the army truck was headed from the Bhimber Gali camp while carrying items for the Iftar celebration to be organised by the local Rashtriya Rifles unit for the civilians at 7 pm Thursday.
“We organised the special mourning assembly on the fourth day of the soldiers’ death at a community hall in Sanghiote where people from our village as well as adjoining Chandial panchayat offered special prayers for the slain,” social activist Amin Khan said.
Many Muslims observe special prayers for their dead on the fourth day to conclude the mourning period. The day also holds significance among Hindus and Sikhs.
A group of terrorists ambushed the army vehicle in the dense forest area of Bhata Dhurian late Thursday afternoon, killing five soldiers and injuring another before fleeing the scene after setting the vehicle on fire. The soldiers were deployed for counter-terror operations in the region.
“The soldiers laid down their lives for our safety and security and we will remember them till doomsday…we request the government to bring the perpetrators of the cowardly attack to book,” Khan said.
He said they feel the pain of their families back home and want to share it through this prayer meeting which will continue throughout the day.
Ahmad said the entire village is mourning since learning about the loss of lives.
“Our village is in mourning as we enjoy cordial relations with our soldiers. We only offered Eid prayers and did not celebrate the festival like usual as it was our loss,” he said, adding, “We salute the bravery of Indian soldiers and stand with them and the families of the slain soldiers.”
Naseeb Khan, another villager, said their hearts are bleeding over the loss and they want the culprits to be identified and arrested.
“We fully support our Army and will not allow terrorists a foothold in the area,” he said.
The Bhatti Durrian forest area has remained a notorious infiltration route for the terrorists attempting to sneak from across the Line of Control (LoC) due to its topography, dense forest cover and natural caves.
In October 2021, nine soldiers were killed in two major gunfights with terrorists in the area during a search operation which continued for over three weeks with no trace of terrorists.
