Another Indian Army camp in the restive Himalayan state of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) came under armed attack—the second time in as many weeks—late on Sunday (Oct. 02) night, local media reported.
Heavy firing was reported from near the 46 Rashtriya Rifles camp in J&K’s Baramulla town, with even grenades reportedly being lobbed. Sections of the media were already referring to this as “suicide attack.”
“The identity of the group which has carried out the attack is yet to be revealed,” News18 reported.
Update: At 12.30am local time, the Indian Army’s Northern Command, which is headquartered in J&K, tweeted that the attack had been contained.
The attack comes within just two weeks of an assault by alleged Pakistan-backed terrorists on another such camp in J&K’s Uri, which resulted in the death of 20 Indian soldiers. The Sept.18 attack has led to worsening of ties between India and Pakistan, especially after the former announced that its forces had on Sept. 29 carried out “surgical strikes” at terrorists’ launching pads across the Line of Control (LoC)—the de facto border in J&K between the two nuclear-armed neighbours.
Pakistan, though, has vehemently denied any such operation by Indian forces.
However, ever since the Uri attack, the LoC has remained extremely volatile, with Indian and Pakistani forces engaged in heavy firing and shelling.
The Indian defence and security establishment was also expecting attacks like the one currently on in Baramulla. “Just like Indian forces took time to prepare for the strikes, Pakistan army will need time to plan and execute a retaliatory response,” The Times of India had quoted an official as saying in its report.
This post has been updated.