Gunfire, blasts at Indian air base, two militants still at large

The United States has condemned the terror attack on the air force base in Punjab’s Pathankot district, which left three Indian Air Force (IAF) men killed.

Loud explosions were also heard at the heavily guarded air base in the early hours of Sunday, but it was unclear if the blasts were part of the fresh battle or controlled explosions.

At least four attackers and seven Indian soldiers have died so far.

The assault began a couple of hours before dawn when a group of gunmen entered the section of the base where the living quarters are located, the Defence Ministry said. Along with the four terrorists killed in Saturday’s counterterrorism operations, the total number of dead now stands at 11.

Soon after returning from his two-day visit to Karnataka, Modi chaired a meeting of top officials including National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar.

Indian army soldiers head towards the Indian Air Force base at Pathankot.

On Saturday, Indian Home Minister Rajnath Singh said the forces were giving befitting reply to the attackers.

“Seven people have been martyred which include a guard, five Defence Security Corps (DSC) personnel and one National Security Guard (NSG)”, Air Commodore J S Dhamoon, Air Officer Commanding (AOC) at Pathankot told media.

From the other side of the border, Yaqoob Khan Bangash, a history professor at Lahore’s Information Technology University, spoke on similar lines, adding that India accepts that the Pakistani state is not behind terror attacks.

Home Secretary Rajiv Mehrishi told reporters he hoped the two believed still to be at large would be “neutralised” by Sunday evening.

Officials said a hijacked police vehicle was used by the gunmen in the attack. It was later found abandoned on a highway connecting Pathankot to Kashmir.

The possible involvement of Pakistan-based militants in the latest raid could be a setback for peace overtures between the nuclear-armed rivals, who have fought three wars since independence in 1947.

“Pakistan would remain committed to partner with India as well as other countries in the region to completely eradicate the menace of terrorism afflicting our region”, Foreign Office said. The Indian response is more muted than in the past and Pakistan has been quick to condemn the attack.

However, the terrorists were unable to enter the area where high-value aircraft were parked, India’s defense ministry said in a statement.

Supporters of Shiv Sena, a Hindu hardline group, shout slogans as they burn an effigy depicting Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif during a protest near the Indian Air Force base.

The security forces repulsed a major attack by the terrorists who had planned to damage the frontier air force base where fighter squadrons were stationed.