Poonch attack kills 4 soldiers: What is PAFF, the group behind the J-K ambush?

Militancy in Kashmir reared its ugly head once again on Thursday when heavily-armed terrorists ambushed two Indian Army vehicles in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch district. The attack and the ensuing gunfight have led to the death of four soldiers and three others have been injured.

The People’s Anti-Fascist Front (PAFF), which is a proxy outfit of the terror group Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) claimed responsibility for the attack.

Meanwhile, two former chief ministers of the erstwhile state – Ghulam Nabi Azad and Mehbooba Mufti – strongly condemned the “dastardly” attack.

But what exactly unfolded on Thursday (21 December), leading to the death of five soldiers and what exactly is PAFF, the outfit that has claimed responsibility for it.

The attack in Poonch

On Thursday evening, two Army vehicles carrying personnel to the site of a cordon-and-search operation came under attack between Dhera Ki Gali and Bufliaz under the jurisdiction of the Surankote police station. This is when heavily-armed terrorists ambushed the vehicles and a gunfight broke out.

Describing the events, sources told Indian Express that two vehicles, a Gypsy and a mini-truck, were on their way from Bufliaz in Surankote to Thanamandi in Rajouri. As the vehicles reached below Topa Pir, terrorists who appeared to have already laid an ambush attacked them.

Visuals from the scene show blood on the street, broken helmets of soldiers and shattered windscreens of the two Army vehicles.

Officials have not ruled out the possibility of the soldiers engaging in hand-to-hand combat with the terrorists during the intense confrontation.

The Indian Army has said that the search for the terrorists involved in the attack was still on. However, the operation would be difficult as the stretch is densely forested and leads to Chamrer forest and then Bhata Dhurian forest.

Officials say this attack joins the list of encounters that have occurred in the Rajouri, Poonch and Reasi districts. Data reveals that a total of 54 people, including 19 security personnel and 28 terrorists have died in attacks this year in these three areas. In Rajouri, 31 people, including 14 security personnel and 10 terrorists died, while in Poonch, five security personnel and 15 terrorists were killed.

PAFF claims responsibility

Shortly after the ambush took place, JeM proxy, PAFF, claimed responsibility for the attack. Some reports say that Masood Azhar, the leader of the Pakistani terrorist group Jaish-e-Mohammed, founded the People’s Anti-Fascist Front.

Moreover, reports add that Mufti Azgar Kashmiri runs the terror outfit while Mufti Abdul Rauf Azhar, the second brother of Masood Azhar, is in charge of the group’s organisation-related operations.

In January, the Union Home Ministry banned PAFF for its involvement in terror acts in Jammu and Kashmir and elsewhere. In its notification, the Home Ministry had then said that PAFF had been regularly issuing threats to security forces, political leaders and civilians working in Jammu and Kashmir from other states.

It added that PAFF along with other outfits was involved in pro-actively conspiring both physically and on social media to undertake violent terrorist acts in Jammu and Kashmir and major cities in India.

It has also been found that PAFF is actively involved in the radicalisation of the youth and recruiting them to handle guns, ammunition and explosives.

Security officials have also found that PAFF has been increasingly been involved in acts of terrorism. Its name has been associated with several incidents in Jammu-Kashmir.

In June 2021, PAFF claimed responsibility for the murder of Rakesh Pandita, a BJP councillor in Pulwama. Pandita was killed when he was visiting his friend’s house in the Tral area. A year later, PAFF once again claimed responsibility for the death of Jammu and Kashmir’s Director General (Prisons) Hemant K Lohia. In a statement, it said, “This is just the beginning of such high profile operations just to warn this Hindutva regime and its collaborators that we can strike anytime and anywhere with precision. This is a small gift to their visiting home minister amid such a security grid. God willing we will continue such operations in future.” However, authorities refuted claims of a terror angle.

Perhaps, one of PAFF’s deadliest attacks was the Poonch attack this year in April. On 20 April, five Indian Army jawans were charred to death as their vehicle caught fire after it was fired upon by terrorists on the Poonch-Jammu highway. The incident occurred near Bhata Durian village when the vehicle was moving from Bhimber Gali to Sangiot in Poonch district.

Also read: Why a village in Poonch is giving Eid celebrations a miss this year

Following the attack, PAFF released a 2.5-minute-long video clip. The video showed a terrorist with a body camera shooting a soldier multiple times, including on his head.

PAFF, it seems, was also responsible for the 4 August ambush in Kulgam, which resulted in the death of three soldiers. At the time, the terror group also claimed that it had snatched the weapons off the slain personnel. Moreover, PAFF terrorists had shot the entire attack with the help of body cameras.

Security officials in the region have noted that PAFF has stepped up its attacks and is gaining notoriety in the region. Moreover, their recruits are being trained very well and the group avoids the use of communication gadgets, which helps them to stay off the radar of security agencies.

With inputs from agencies