Operation concludes at Pathankot airbase, 4 soldiers, 4 suspects dead

NEW DELHI: (Dunya News) – The operation at Pathankot airbase has finally concluded on Saturday after 14 hours of the terrorist attack. The operation cost Indian army 4 soldiers while 4 terror suspects died in the operation, reported Dunya News.

According to details, 6 armed attackers attacked the Indian airbase located in Pathankot district of Indian Punjab. The terrorist came in a government vehicle and wore military uniforms. They attacked the airbase and broke into the non-operational area at about 3:30 pm where helicopters and jets are stationed.

Firing stopped for a while but then resumed again. 2 explosions were also heard during the search operation. According to Indian media, the vehicle used in the attack belonged to police superintendent of Gurdaspur and was snatched yesterday.

Security in Delhi has been beefed up after the Pathankot attack. Additional officials have been deployed at airport, railway station, bus stand and other sensitive buildings.

Earlier, a similar attack on a police station in Gurdaspur had claimed 7 lives. 3 of the attackers had also been killed in a 12-hour clash with the police.

Also read: Airbase attack turns out to be staged by Indian govt

According to the eyewitnesses, the safety barriers placed at the main gate of the airbase had been removed last night and the shopkeepers in the vicinity had been told to shut down the shops early. The attackers involved in this attack near Pakistan border came in a government vehicle and were wearing military uniforms.

The question here is that if the attackers were Pakistani then how they were able to get Indian government cars and military uniforms. Even the call was traced during the attack. The Id cards of the attackers also seemed dubious.

It’s been a norm in India that whenever the government seems willing to talk to Pakistan, a terrorist attack occurs somehow and all the efforts go back to square-1.

Also read: Gunmen attack Indian airbase, kill two security officials

At least four gunmen dressed in army uniforms infiltrated Pathankot air base in northern Punjab state at around 3:30 am (2200 GMT), security officials said.

Security officials stand guard following an attack on Indian Air Force base in Pathankot on January 2, 2016

It comes one week after Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid a surprise visit to Pakistan, the first by an Indian premier in 11 years and threatens to derail talks between the nuclear-armed rivals, who have fought three wars since independence in 1947.

"We want peace but if terrorists carry out attacks on Indian soil we will give them a befitting reply," Indian Home Minister Rajnath Singh said in televised remarks.

Fresh gunfire was again heard at the base at around 0545 GMT as police combed the installation looking for militants still hiding out in buildings, television channels reported.

 Indian security personnel stand guard next to a barricade outside the Indian Air Force base at Pathankot in Punjab, India, January 2, 2016

H. S. Dhillon, a senior provincial police official, told AFP earlier that the operation was still ongoing.

"We are searching the area. Two of the attackers were killed in the initial exchange of gunfire but we can t confirm if more have been killed," he said, in response to reports that four gunmen had been killed.

"Five to six security personnel were injured and they have been evacuated to hospital."

 They are heavily armed 

The Pathankot air base houses dozens of fighter jets and is important for its strategic location about 50 kilometres (30 miles) from the Pakistan border.

Local television stations showed helicopters surveying the area, while elite National Security Guard commandos were flown in to flush out the attackers.

A top security official who was at the scene and asked not to be named said security forces had so far prevented the attackers from inflicting major damage at the base.

Indian security personnel stand guard beside a road near the Indian Air Force base at Pathankot in Punjab, India, January 2, 2016

"They are heavily armed and the attack is aimed to cause maximum damage to the equipment at the station but we have been successful so far," he said.

Top security officials including India s National Security Adviser Ajit Doval held a meeting in New Delhi in the aftermath of Saturday s attack, media reports said.

HIGH ALERT

Authorities had put the Punjab on high alert on Friday after five gunmen in army fatigues hijacked a car driven by a senior police officer, which was later found abandoned on a highway connecting Pathankot to the restive neighbouring region of Kashmir.

It was not yet clear if there was any link with Saturday s attack.

The important road link connects the restive neighbouring region of Kashmir with India s plains.

In July, three gunmen dressed in army uniforms opened fire on a bus and then attacked a police station in the nearby Gurdaspur district of Punjab, killing seven people including four policemen.

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