Jaish offshoot releases photo of truck ‘before’ Poonch attack

Arjun Sharma

Jammu, April 25

Taking responsibility of the Poonch terror attack in which five soldiers died, Jaish-e-Mohammed’s (JeM) offshoot terror group People’s Anti-Fascist Front (PAFF) has released a purported photograph of the Army truck shot by a body camera before it was ambushed on April 20.

The photo, which went viral on social media after being released on Monday, shows the Army truck plying on the road with forest area on both sides.

Intelligence sources had earlier informed that investigators believe that a spotter or an over ground worker (OGW) was keeping an eye on the truck. Terrorists launched an attack soon after it reached a secluded area.

A text which was also released with the photographs with the name of a spokesperson of PAFF – Tanveer Ahmad Rather – at the bottom claimed that the driver of the truck was shot dead with the first volley of bullets.

Reports had earlier claimed that the terrorists fled with the weapons of the soldiers. The statement by PAFF confirmed they took away the weapons.

The terror organisation has also claimed that an IED was placed on the fuel tank of the truck before they fled from the spot.

A lone truck on the road with its lights on is seen in the photo presumably clicked from the roadside. In another photo, an AK series rifle in a hand is seen with ‘Coming Soon’ written on it. The terror outfit has said that it would release the video of the attack soon.

Sources in Army intelligence informed that an OGW might have been keeping an eye on the truck to keep the ultras informed about its movement in real-time. It is believed that an OGW from a nearby village might have informed the terrorists about the movement of truck as it was carrying fruits and food for an ‘iftar’ party scheduled on April 20 evening.

“The way in which the ambush was conducted at a place from where the aim for a sniper at the driver would have been easy makes the investigators believe that the attack was being planned for days. There are apprehensions that one or many spotters were following the truck to the point where the ambush was planned,” said sources in intelligence.

Investigators will also try to know more about the nature of the attack from the lone survivor who is under treatment at the Command Hospital at Udhampur. Although the soldier was injured in the attack, he managed to get himself out of the truck in time before it got burnt.

Meanwhile, locals in Poonch district organised a candle march to show sympathy with the families of the five soldiers who laid down their lives.