Jammu hostage crisis: All militants killed, 3 captives dead

Indian soldiers take positions at the scene of a gun battle in Jammu, India, 27 Aug 2008

Jammu hostage crisis: All militants killed, 3 captives dead

Jammu, August 28: Army's Special Forces shot dead the last of the three suspected LeT militants early on Thursday and freed seven hostages including four children they seized in a house near Jammu, ending a 19-hours hostage drama which also witnessed the killing of three men captives by the ultras.

"The operation is over. Our Special Forces have killed third militant early today," army spokesman Lieutenant Colonel S D Goswami said.

Goswami said that seven hostages, including four children, their mother who sustained bullet injuries in her leg and two other persons were safe after the prolonged hostage drama and gunbattle between the security forces and militants.

However, three hostages were killed by the militants before the final assault was launched, he said.

"The final assault was lunched at 1145 p.m. last night by the special forces of the army and entire family of the house owner including four children were rescued," he said.

Ashok Kumar, a teacher and the tenant, one territorial army jawan who went inside during the operation and another person were killed, the army spokesman said.

After killing all the militants holed up inside the two-storeyed house at Chinore, 20 kms from Jammu city, the army moved in and rescued the hostages.

Thirty five-year-old Sunita Devi, the injured mother of the four children aged between two and nine, was admitted to the Government Medical College Hospital in Jammu.

The children have been identified as Sheetal (9), Vipin (2), Ashad (7) and Kajal (4). Two other captives who were rescued were the house owner's brother and sister-in-law.

Earlier in the evening, security forces killed two of the three militants who were inside the house.

Girl sees militants killing her neighbour

Thursday, 28 August , 2008, 18:13

“Jammu Chinore (Jammu): Held hostage along with her three siblings and mother for 19 hours, Kajal survived the ordeal but the trauma of seeing her neighbour being brutally gunned down by militants may remain etched in the mind of the four-year-old forever.
(They threatened to kill us and even slapped us, asking us to remain quiet)," the young girl said, her voice fumbling, as she was reunited with her father Billu Ram Bhagat, who was out of the house when the militants struck.

"When they killed Kala Ram, I became very afraid," she said.

Kala Ram, 24, was among the three hostages killed by the militants during the stand-off.

As she tried to recount the shocking drama, Kajal's brother Kumar, seven, was playing with the youngest, Vipin, who is just two-years-old. Their mother Sunita Devi, 35, who was shot at by the militants and wounded in the thigh, has been admitted to a hospital.

Narrating the incident, Kajal's sister Sheetal, 9, said the three men were wearing police uniforms.

"One of them was bleeding from his leg. They asked for milk and then huddled us in the kitchen. We locked ourselves in as we realised that they were militants but they broke the door and brought us out," she said.

The militants then took the family to the basement. "The militants kept threatening us. They said they will kill us," the child said