Four Pakistani-origin terrorists, with local aide, executed a deadly terror attack on a pilgrim bus from Shiv Khori at Teryath in Reasi district on Sunday, as per official reports.
The attackers killed nine civilians, including a bus driver, conductor, and pilgrims from Rajasthan and UP. The dead consisted of a family of four, including a two-year-old boy, while 43 others were injured.
Political parties, civil society, and social activists have widely condemned the attack, calling it cowardly.
Teams from the National Investigation Agency (NIA), State Investigation Agency (SIA), and forensic experts are already at the scene assisting local police in the ongoing investigation, and massive operations are underway to track down the assailants.
Police sources confirmed that the attackers were Pakistani terrorists operating from the mountains of Rajouri and Poonch districts.
"They attacked with the support of their local agents, hiding in jungle hideouts and taking directions from Pakistan through secured communication," sources told reporters.
Furthermore, the terrorists took shelter in the forests surrounding Teryath and executed the attack an hour before the swearing-in ceremony of the new Council of Ministers led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The style through which the attack was executed reflected the pattern executed in previous attacks like Surankote DKG near Buffliaz Poonch (December 21, 2023) and Sanai Nallah (May 4, 2024), where the terrorists ambushed buses on deserted roads during the evening hours.
According to eyewitnesses, "One of the terrorists who came on the road was wearing an Army uniform. Another terrorist, who fired from the hill near the bus, was also in combat dress.
Two terrorists provided cover from the hills while a local associate facilitated their movement from the Pir Panjal forests to Teryath and back.”
The terrorists were reported to be highly trained in military warfare, possibly affiliated with the Pakistani Armed Forces. "They had INSAS and M4 Carbine weapons," said official sources after analysing the incident on the spot.
The group that executed this attack may be one of the two operating in the forests of Poonch, Rajouri, and Reasi. Meanwhile, the authorities have initiated a high-level inquiry into the attack.
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