PATHANKOT/NEW DELHI, January 3 (Reuters): Security forces battled into Sunday evening to secure an air base near the border with Pakistan, a day after a militant attack that has killed seven military personnel and wounded another 20.
As night fell, it was unclear whether two or more militants were still at large after Saturday’s pre-dawn raid on the Pathankot air base in Punjab. Four attackers have been confirmed killed. “The area cannot be declared fully sanitised,” Air Marshal Anil Khosla told a news briefing in New Delhi. Home Secretary Rajiv Mehrishi told reporters he hoped the two believed still to be at large would be “neutralised” overnight. Without recovering their bodies they could not be confirmed dead.
That contradicted earlier statements by home ministry and army officials who, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the two holdouts had been killed.
The attack by gunmen disguised as soldiers came a week after Prime Minister Narendra Modi made an unscheduled visit to Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif in an effort to revive talks between the nuclear-armed neighbours.
Officials said the attack bore the hallmarks of previous suspected assaults by Pakistan-based militant groups, underscoring the fragility of recent efforts to revive bilateral talks between the often uneasy neighbours. There was no immediate claim of responsibility. Pakistan has condemned the attack and said it wanted to continue to build on the goodwill created by the impromptu meeting between Modi and Sharif last month.
MORE SHOOTING
Gunfire continued into the evening as security forces hunted the remaining attackers in the Indian Air Force base, a sprawling compound that lies just 25 km from the border with Pakistan. Air Commodore J.S. Dhamoon said the attackers had burst into a guards’ mess at the air base, where they were preparing breakfast on Saturday morning. A guard chased after one of the attackers and killed him in the struggle, only to be shot dead by a gunman’s bullet. The other three attackers were neutralised in the late afternoon, said Dhamoon.
Indian leaders had already praised the armed forces for their heroism in Saturday’s shootout, with Modi saying they did not let the “enemies of humanity” who attacked the base succeed. But that appeared premature on Sunday, as shooting broke out after midday, sparking a renewed manhunt on the base, from which Indian Air Force MiG-21 jets and attack helicopters fly. Modi chaired a high-level meeting with his national security adviser and foreign policy team.
Military trucks were seen entering and exiting the walled compound throughout the day, including a demining vehicle. Dozens of security guards continued their vigil, while protesters shouted slogans and burned a Pakistani flag nearby. One of the Indian security men killed in the attack was Subedar Fateh Singh, who won gold and silver medals in the first Commonwealth Shooting Championships held in 1995, the National Rifle Association of India said.
Delhi put on high alert
New Delhi, January 3 (IANS): The national capital was put on high alert in the wake of the Pathankot terror attack and intelligence inputs about a suspected terror strike by banned outfit Jaish-E-Mohammed, police sources said on Sunday. "Terrorist outfit Jaish-E-Mohammed is planning to carry out an attack in the city," an intelligence source said.
Earlier, there were inputs that Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Jaipur, Bengaluru, Goa and Kolkata were on the radar of some terrorists groups. In view of the inputs, Delhi Police Commissioner B.S. Bassi on Sunday organised a second consecutive meeting with officials, including the heads of the bomb disposal unit and the fire department.
On Saturday, Bassi had reviewed security arrangements in the city with Delhi Police officials including special commissioners and joint commissioners. Sources said Bassi, in Sunday's meeting, asked officials to remain on high alert to avoid any untoward incident in the city. He also directed officials to keep up the heightened security at the airport, railway stations, bus stands and other vital installations, the sources said.
