No civilian or security personnel had been killed in any terror-related incident in Jammu and Kashmir’s Reasi since 2012. That changed on June 9, when terrorists killed nine pilgrims and injured 41 others – a clear signal that the Jammu region is the new focus of Pakistan-sponsored terrorists.
According to data compiled by India Today and the New Delhi-based Institute of Conflict Management (ICM), 42 civilians and security forces have been killed in 29 incidents of terrorism in the Jammu region, nearly twice the number of such deaths in the Kashmir division since January 2023. The South Asia Terrorism Portal of the ICM shows 24 civilians and security personnel fell victim to terrorism-related incidents in Anantnag, Srinagar, Baramulla, Kulgam, Pulwama, and Shopian districts of Kashmir until June 13, 2024.
During the same period, 17 civilians lost their lives in Rajouri district, and 25 security personnel laid down their lives in encounters and ambushes in the Poonch, Rajouri, Kathua, Reasi, and Udhampur districts, the data shows.
As many as 53 civilians and 29 members of the Army, CRPF, and the Jammu and Kashmir Police were injured in terror-related incidents during this period.
The terrorists’ strategy to shift the battleground to J&K’s Hindu-dominated Jammu division became evident when terrorists gunned down five people in Rajouri’s Dhangri village on the first day of 2023. Two children later died in an IED blast planted by the terrorists. Nearly a dozen armed personnel lost their lives in the ensuing months-long anti-terror operations in the jungles of the Pir Panjal range.
The nation was up for another grief when terrorists ambushed and killed five soldiers in Poonch in April 2023. The attacks have since continued and expanded into more districts following the June 9 attack this year.
DECODING ENEMY INTENTIONS
The question on the minds of many Indians is: Why are terrorists targeting the Jammu region?
It has become difficult for them to operate in Kashmir due to a crackdown on the terror ecosystem and funding. Additionally, the forests of the Pir Panjal serve as a natural hiding space for intruders.
“Obviously, Kashmir is difficult to go to today,” said Lt Gen (retired) Syed Ata Hasnain, who commanded the Srinagar-based Chinar Corps.
Strategic affairs expert Sushant Sareen said, “The center of gravity has shifted to this region. We should have woken up to this many years back.”
In an interview with India Today TV, Lt Gen Hasnain said terrorists chose to attack the pilgrims’ bus in Reasi at a time when Narendra Modi was taking oath in a grand ceremony in Delhi to send a message.
“One or more layers of (Pakistan’s deep state) decided that they needed to convey a message to the world that while the NDA government may be talking about its achievements, it has not got Jammu and Kashmir under control,” said Lt Gen Hasnain.
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via The Novum Times
The Novum Times 