179 terrorists still active in Jammu and Kashmir: Report

New Delhi, July 4: There are currently 179 terrorists who are active in Jammu and Kashmir, according to the Ministry for Home Affairs.

Officials in the Home Ministry say that terrorists have infiltrated in large numbers this year. While the security forces have managed to kill 64 terrorists this year alone, there are still 179 still active in the state.

Recently the Ministry for Home Affairs had reviewed the situation in Jammu and Kashmir following the Pampore attack. It was decided to step security and as a first measure the BSF would replace the CRPF in several areas.

Infiltrations increase:

Home Ministry officials have been told that the number infiltrations too had gone up. For the year 2016 statistics would show that there were 56 infiltrations that took place.

One had been caught while 5 had been killed. While 14 managed to escape and return to Pakistan, 36 were successful in infiltrating the state.

While 36 terrorists are of Pakistan origin the remaining 143 are locals.

According to the Home Ministry the terrorists active in the state are from the Jaish-e-Mohammad, Lashkar-e-Tayiba and the Hizbul Mujahideen. The Hizbul Mujahideen in particular is the most active in the state today. This outfit is in fact recruiting the younger lot and has been active on the social media too.

The Hizbul Mujahideen and the Lashkar-e-Tayiba have both directed their cadres to target only security personnel. Both groups say that the civilians must not be targeted as there is a good chance that they will lose out on local support.

OneIndia News