A newly surfaced outfit calling itself Pasdaran-e-Hurriyat Kashmir has claimed responsibility for the November 11 ambush on Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kulgam district, in which three jawans were injured. The claim has drawn attention to a possible new identity being used by an existing terror network, as security agencies suspect the attack was carried out by hybrid terrorists associated with The Resistance Front (TRF), a Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) offshoot.
Notably, TRF has not directly claimed responsibility for the attack. Instead, the statement emerged under the banner of Pasdaran-e-Hurriyat Kashmir, whose appearance has raised questions about whether an established terror network is attempting to operate under a new name.
The statement, reportedly issued around 6 pm on November 11 in the name of spokesperson Mohammad Omar Azzam, warned security forces of a “new wave of devastating attacks”.
Pakistan link under scrutiny
The claim reportedly surfaced through an Instagram account previously known as ‘Yalghaar Media’. Its earlier content had allegedly been removed before the account was rebranded and used to circulate the statement.
A screenshot reportedly captured at around 10 pm showed Pakistan as the account’s location. The timing of the rebranding, disappearance of earlier content and Pakistan-based location indicator have raised suspicions about the account’s origins and possible cross-border links.
The attack took place at around 2.15 pm on November 11, when motorcycle-borne assailants opened fire on CRPF personnel deployed at a checkpoint, or naka, in Akhran village of Kulgam district. According to the CRPF, the attackers fired six rounds before fleeing. The checkpoint is located approximately four kilometres from the National Highway.
Kishtwar SPO killings add to security concerns
The Kulgam ambush comes amid another serious security development in Jammu and Kashmir, where the bodies of two missing Special Police Officers (SPOs) were recovered in the higher reaches of Dachhan in Kishtwar district.
The personnel, identified as Babi Chand, 57, and Rashpal Kumar, 45, were attached to the Jammu and Kashmir Police’s Special Operations Group (SOG). They went missing on November 11 while proceeding towards a post of the 17 Rashtriya Rifles (RR) in the region.
According to reports, both were found with multiple gunshot wounds, including a bullet injury to the head in one case. Their bodies were reportedly recovered around two kilometres from their last known location in the Dachhan forest. Their service weapons, an INSAS rifle and a .303 rifle, are also missing.
The two officers had reportedly proceeded beyond Kiyar Top with pony porters after their SOG escort returned. When they failed to reach their destination, a joint search operation involving Marwah Police, the SOG and 17 RR was launched.
Preliminary intelligence inputs have pointed to the possible movement of foreign and local terrorists in the wider region, including suspected Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) and Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) elements. Meanwhile, the JeM-linked Kashmir Tigers outfit reportedly circulated cryptic messages on Facebook hours before the bodies were recovered.
