Security forces continued the search and combing operation in the vast forest area in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district for the third day on Monday, officials said.
Officials said there has been no contact with militants since Saturday evening.
Two soldiers, identified as Havildar Deepak Kumar Yadav and Lance Naik Praveen Sharma, were killed in a gun battle in the mountainous forests of the Ahlan Gadole area of Kokernag located at an altitude of 10,000 ft on Saturday. A civilian Abdul Rashid Dar who was wounded during the gunfight died on Sunday.
“The searches continued on the third day today and forces were moving cautiously in the vast forest area,” officials said.
A senior police officer said that searches have been extended in the Doda-Bhaderwah in Jammu region as the forest area in Anantnag where the gun battle took place is close to that area.
Police suspect that three to four foreign militants are believed to have engaged with forces in the forest area on Saturday.
