Five militants were killed on Thursday while trying to infiltrate across the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kupwara district, the police said.

The militants were killed in a joint operation by the Jammu and Kashmir Police and the Indian Army in the Machil sector while they were trying to cross over into the valley.

The five, whose identities are yet to be determined, belonged to the Lashkar-e-Taiba terror group, the police said.

“The joint team observed movement of terrorists in the thick dense forests of the area who, taking advantage of difficult terrain, infiltrated to our side,” the Jammu and Kashmir Police said. “Employing meticulous tactics, the terrorists were intercepted who fired indiscriminately upon the joint team. The fire was retaliated, leading to the elimination of five unidentified terrorists linked with proscribed terror outfit LeT.”

The police said that they also recovered a huge number of arms and ammunition including five AK rifles.

The Army and the police launched the operation on the intervening night between October 25 and October 26 after security forces received intelligence inputs about an infiltration attempt. They laid multiple ambushes along the Line of Control.

BSF jawan, four civilians injured in cross-border firing

A Border Security Force jawan and four civilians were injured after Pakistan Rangers targeted five Indian posts along the international border in the Arnia and RS Pura sectors on Thursday night, reported PTI.

The ceasefire violation came hours after the joint operation in the Machil sector.

A senior Border Security Force official said that Indian troops responded “befittingly” to the unprovoked firing, reported PTI. The injured jawan has been admitted to a hospital.

Unidentified officials also said that Pakistan Rangers fired mortar shells on civilian areas including Arnia, Suchtgarh, Sia, Jabowal and Treva, reported PTI.

Residents of a village in Arnia told ANI that they rushed to bunkers for safety when the shelling began.