Suspects spotted in J&K’s Kathua, search operation launched

JAMMU: A joint team of security forces Monday launched a search operation near a forest in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kathua district on being tipped off about the movement of three terror suspects. “An alert was sounded in the area and along the Jammu-Pathankot Highway as a precautionary measure,” an official said.Police said a civilian first spotted the trio in Saladhi area of Hiranagar and alerted local police, following which cops and paramilitary personnel cordoned off the area and initiated a combing operation to trace the suspects.Several such cordon-and-search operations have been conducted in the upper reaches of Kathua and Kishtwar districts in search of suspected terrorists since May 22, when a fierce gun battle between security personnel and terrorists left a soldier dead and two injured in Kishtwar’s Singhpora. These operations are part of area domination exercises aimed at restoring confidence among locals.