Amid the ‘zero tolerance’ claims by the government against terrorism, five more Indian Army soldiers, including an officer, were killed in action (KIA) in an encounter with terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir’s Doda district on July 15.

With the recent casualties in the valley, the total number of Army personnel KIA in the past over 2.5 years summed up to 48 in J&K, according to reports.

This month came with the sacrifice of 10 security personnels losing lives in Jammu. Within 20 days of July 2024, four army soldiers were killed and six others injured today when terrorists attacked an army convoy in J&K’s Kathua on July 8.

The latest attack took the lives of five security personnel in a gunfight on July 15 in Doda, Jammu. Last week, two soldiers were killed on July 6 in separate encounters in Kulgam district. 

This year, a total of 17 security personnel lost their lives, including an Indian Air Force (IAF) soldier and a policeman.

The episode of terrorism began this year in May when militants ambushed a convoy of the IAF in Poonch on May 4 and a soldier was KIA with four others injured.

On June 12, five army soldiers and one special police officer (SPO) of Jammu and Kashmir Police were injured in a terrorist attack in Doda district, as per reports. 

However, ahead of the first Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir after abrogation of Article 370, the recent attacks depict an apparent shift of terrorism in the Jammu division instead of the Kashmir valley. 

June’s Reasi terror attack shook the nation when a tragic incident occurred where a bus carrying pilgrims was attacked by terrorists, resulting in the vehicle plunging into a gorge. The attack claimed the lives of 10 people and left 33 others injured.

A Kargil war veteran Major Rakesh, a Shaurya Chakra awardee, took to his X, “What ails us? Why lose so many precious lives even after declaring ‘Op Allout’ a success. This is an immense loss and that too on a regular basis.”