Uri terrorists scaled LoC fence using a ladder?

A view of the Army base in Uri that came under attack on September 18. Photo: Nissar Ahmad

An investigation carried out by the Army to identify the infiltration route of the four terrorists killed in the Uri attack has concluded that a ladder was used near Salamabad nallah, official sources said.

The Army officials said that one of the four, who mounted the brazen attack in Uri, about 102 km from Srinagar, had infiltrated using the gaps along the fence near Salamabad nallah and erected a ladder on the Indian side of the fence, while the other three had a ladder on the other side.

The sources said it was difficult for all the four to infiltrate through the gap used by the first terrorist. Each one of them had been carrying heavy rucksacks filled with ammunition, weapons and eatables. It would have taken them a lot of time to cross the fence and posed a grave risk to their lives as Army teams, which routinely patrol the area, could have spotted them.

After infiltration, the ladder, carried by the first terrorist, was handed over back to two guides — Mohd Kabir Awan and Basharat — who accompanied them up to the LoC, sources said.

The Army is also conducting an investigation in Gohallan and an adjoining village, Jablah, as they suspect the terrorists might have taken shelter there for a day before launching the deadly attack on September 18.