New Delhi: The two terrorists killed in Srinagar seemed to be foreign ‘fidayeen’ (suicide attackers), Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde said yesterday.
Items recovered from them appeared to be of Pakistani make, Shinde told parliament.
Five Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel were killed by the two militants before they were gunned down.
According to Shinde, an ointment tube recovered from the slain men was found to be manufactured in Karachi. They also had diaries with telephone numbers.
“The numbers in the diaries appear to be of Pakistani origin,” he said, speaking in the Lok Sabha after opposition leader Sushma Swaraj.
“Their bodies were shaven, which confirms them to be fidayeens. The killed terrorists are suspected to be of foreign origin,” he said.
The minister said responsibility for the attack had been taken by a caller for Hizb-ul-Mujahideen but the authenticity of the claim was yet to be ascertained.
Security forces in Jammu and Kashmir yesterday arrested a Pakistani militant in Srinagar believed to have been part of a ‘fidayeen’ (suicide) attack which killed five troopers the day before.
Acting on specific information, the security forces arrested a Pakistani militant in Chattabal area of Srinagar city, barely two kilometres from the Bemina area where the guerrillas attacked a posse of CRPF on Wednesday.
With the Srinagar attack adding to concerns over cross-border terrorism, the government has opted against implementing a proposed group tourist visa facility under the liberalised visa regime with Pakistan from March 15, an official said yesterday. While lack of preparation was cited as a reason for the visa agreement not being implemented, sources said India was concerned about attempts at infiltration from across the border.
IANS
