Jammu: At least four residents of Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK) were killed in a suspected improvised explosive device (IED) blast across the Line of Control (LoC), adjacent to the Krishna Ghati sector in Poonch district, on Monday, prompting heightened security on the Indian side, officials said.
The powerful blast reportedly occurred in Satwal-Naki area of Hajira tehsil of PoJK, when a group of people were reportedly laying water pipes along the Pakistan side of the LoC, officials said.
Citing preliminary information received from across the border, officials said the deceased were identified as Faizan Sagheer, Ishtiaq, Waqas Sharief, and Asim Rafiq of Battal Mandhol village of PoJK. The deceased were reportedly cousins.
Officials said the circumstances leading to the blast are yet to be established, but it is suspected that an IED could have been triggered, leading to the explosion.
The involvement of any of the deceased in terror activities was not known immediately, officials said.
Following the explosion, security forces sounded an alert across the sector and intensified vigilance along the LoC to assess the situation and prevent any possible security breach, officials said.
In a separate development, Indian Army troops on Monday detected two rusted landmines near the border fence in Basoni area of Mendhar sector.
The landmines were spotted during track construction at 8.25 am and 12.10 pm, officials said, adding both explosive devices were later destroyed by Army experts in a controlled explosion.
Around a dozen landmines were detected and defused by the Army in the area during the past one week.
The forward areas along the LoC are dotted with landmines as part of an anti-infiltration system. However, heavy rainfall can sometimes wash away the mines, causing them to surface in areas where they may pose a potential risk.
