Kishtwar: Security forces in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar district have busted a Hamas-style terrorist hideout in the dense Dool forest area, as a major counter-terror operation entered its third day on Monday. The encounter began on August 9 after forces received a credible intelligence input about the presence of a group of Hizbul Mujahideen terrorists in the region.
The hideout, discovered deep inside a hillock, was a 30–40-foot-long natural cave capable of accommodating more than half a dozen people. It had multiple escape routes cleverly camouflaged with grass and bushes, making detection difficult. Officials said the design bore a striking resemblance to tunnel-based tactics used by Hamas militants in Gaza to evade Israeli forces.
“These natural caves are strategically modified to dodge security forces, ensuring terrorist survival in the Chenab Valley’s mountainous belt,” a senior official told The Daily Guardian, on condition of anonymity. He added that such hideouts are vital for militants operating in the high-altitude terrain of Kathua, Udhampur, Rajouri, Poonch and Doda, where harsh winter conditions make survival without local assistance nearly impossible.
Security forces blasted open the entrance to the cave before commencing a detailed search of the site. The Army’s White Knight Corps confirmed that troops conducting an intelligence-based operation had established contact with terrorists in the Dul area in the early hours of August 10. Gunfire was exchanged, and the operation is ongoing.
The encounter in Kishtwar follows the twin encounters of Dachigam and Kulgam, where four terrorists—including those involved in the Pahalgam attack—were killed.
Officials said the search operation in Dul will continue and that a multi-pronged strategy is being devised to flush out the remaining terrorists hiding in the mountains.
