Residents of Sangiote village in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch district are in mourning after five soldiers were killed in a terrorist ambush on Thursday.
The Army truck was carrying fruits and other items for an iftar gathering scheduled to be held in Sangiote later that evening. As a result, the village has decided not to celebrate Eid on Saturday, a report in Indian Express stated.
Attack on Army truck
The report cited locals saying invitations had gone out to several people in the village for the 7 pm event, and arrangements were being taken care of by the Rashtriya Rifles unit.
The truck was carrying materials from the RR headquarters at Basooni in Balakote and had picked up more items en route from Bhimber Gali area, where the RR has a significant presence due to the movement of Army convoys between Poonch and Rajouri.
Around 3 pm, when the loaded vehicle crossed Tota Gali, and was just 7-8 km short of its destination, unidentified terrorists who had already laid an ambush attacked it from multiple sides.
When Army troops and villagers from nearby Bhatta Durian reached the spot soon after the attack, they found the charred bodies of five soldiers, a sixth in critical condition, and damaged fruits and edibles strewn around.
Sangiote village in mourning
Sarpanch of the Sangiote panchayat, Mukhtiaz Khan, said he was among those invited for the iftar. He, on Friday, expressed grief over death of the five army personnel.
The villagers were devastated by the news, and a pall of gloom descended on the village as soon as they received information about the attack from social media groups. However, the police and Army had cordoned off the area by then, preventing villagers from reaching the site.
No Eid celebration
Mukhtiaz Khan said that the villagers will not celebrate Eid on Saturday and that they will only offer namaz. He added that the deceased were part of the RR unit deployed in the village and that their thoughts are with their families. The village decided to cancel all Eid festivities as a mark of respect to the martyred soldiers.
