Indian Army on Pulwama attack: Here are key takeaways from press conference

The joint press conference comes after one of the worst terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir in which 40 CRPF soldiers were killed.

NEW DELHI: While addressing a joint press conference with the state police and the Central Reserve Police Force at the Badamibagh Cantonment Headquarters of army's 15 Corps, Lieutenant General, K.J.S. Dhillion, requested mothers of Kashmiri militants to persuade their sons to surrender. The joint press conference comes after one of the worst terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir in which 40 CRPF soldiers were killed. The attack was carried out when a JeM suicide bomber rammed a vehicle carrying huge quantities of explosives into a CRPF convoy in Pulwama district last on Thursday. Here Is What Army’s Corps Commander Lt Gen K J S Dhillon Said:

1. In less than 100 hours of the terror attack in Pulwama, we have eliminated the top leadership of the JeM that was being directly handled by the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and the Pakistan Army.
2. We were tracking the top JeM cadres ever since February 14. The Pulwama terror attack was coordinated by the JeM cadres in Pakistan and the Pakistan Army.
3. In Monday’s operation in Pulwama, we have killed Kamran, who was the operational commander of the JeM in Kashmir together with another Pakistani and a local terrorist of the outfit. What the terrorists have succeeded in doing is only one or two per cent of what was denied to them because of the alertness of the security forces. There was no restriction on movement of civilian traffic when the lone terrorist managed to get on to the highway and hit the CRPF bus. Restrictions on civilian traffic during movement of convoys of security forces are in place now
4. We took injuries on our chin to ensure protection to civilians in the area. You all know that except for the one civilian casualty that happened when the operation started, the security forces ensured that no civilian casualty occurred during such a long-drawn operation. The senior officers of the security forces always lead operations from the front.
5. Brigadier Harbir Singh who was injured along with Deputy Inspector General (South Kashmir) Amit Kumar on Monday (who was on leave). He cut his leave short and reached the site of the operation directly. Both the brigadier and the DIG are doing very well in army's base hospital and they are out of danger
6. I would request all the mothers in Kashmir to ask their son to come back to mainstream. Anyone who has a gun will be killed. We have a great surrender scheme and mothers should request sons to come back.