150 highly trained foreign terrorists in Valley: Experts
NEW DELHI: Around 150 highly trained foreign terrorists, mostly belonging to Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), are active in the Kashmir Valley, two people involved in counter-insurgency in the region said on Wednesday.
Security forces have intensified operations in Kashmir amid a nationwide Covid-19 lockdown and killed over 30 terrorists since late March. According to government data, 13 of the 68 terrorists killed in Jammu & Kashmir this year were foreigners. Foreign terrorists accounted for 31 out of 156 killed in gun battles with security forces last year. According to the data, 219 locals joined militancy in Kashmir in 2018, 119 in 2019 and 35 this year till date.
The presence of high number of foreign terrorists in Valley has particularly set alarm bells ringing among the security and intelligence agencies. A large number of them are believed to have infiltrated into India in April. Close to 150 local militants are also active in the Valley.
Most of the foreign terrorists are usually holed up in Pulwama, Anantnag, Kupwara, Shopian, Kulgam and Baramulla districts, and they try to attack camps of security forces or their patrols.
“The presence of over 150 FTs [foreign terrorists] in the Valley; that too in the first four months of the year is worrisome. This number is likely to swell with the opening of infiltration routes as over 250 terrorists are waiting at launch pads across border,” said an official.
A second counter-insurgency official said the foreign terrorists are getting support from locals . A large number of foreign terrorists are believed to be a part of the new outfit called The Resistance Front (TRF) created by the Pakistan army and spy agency InterServices Intelligence in response to the nullification last year of the Article 370 .
Indian agencies believe TRF is the LeT’s new name as Islamabad faces international scrutiny over the terror groups sheltered in Pakistan. Terror groups have changed their names in the past too in similar situations.
MOST OF THE FOREIGN TERRORISTS ARE USUALLY HOLED UP IN PULWAMA, ANANTNAG, KUPWARA, SHOPIAN, KULGAM, BARAMULLA DISTRICTS