3 soldiers injured in blast in J-K's Shopian

Samaan Lateef

Srinagar, June 2

Three soldiers were injured, one of them critically, in a blast in Shopian district of south Kashmir on Thursday.

The blast took place inside their “private hired” vehicle at Sadow village, police said.

The Army said that at around 3am, based on specific intelligence, a counter insurgency operation was launched in the general area of Patitohalan in Shopian.

“While moving towards the target area, about a kilometre from Sedow, an explosion took place in the private hired vehicle being used by the team, resulting in injuries to three soldiers,” said defence spokesperson Colonnel Emran Mosavi. 

Mosavi said the blast is very likely to be from an IED, a grenade or a battery malfunctioning in the vehicle. 

The nature of the blast is being investigated, Inspector General of Police, Kashmir, Vijay Kumar, said.

The injured personnel were immediately shifted to Shopian’s district hospital, and thereafter evacuated to 92 Base hospital in Srinagar.

“One soldier is critical while two others are stable,” he said.

The blast badly damaged the vehicle as it tore apart the window shield and its right front side.

The affected area has been cordoned and all likely escape routes have been sealed. Search to nab the terrorists is in progress.