Security sources say another Ranger member was injured as the attackers also targeted police with automatic weapons.
Members of the Rangers were martyred in an attack by armed groups in Rawalakot. Photo: Express
Armed groups of the banned Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) attacked security forces and civilians in Rawalakot, killing one Ranger member and injuring another, security sources said on Tuesday.
After failing to achieve their “nefarious agenda”, armed groups of the banned group opened fire on a civilian area near Matial Maira bus station in Rawalakot on the morning of July 14, the sources said in a statement. The aim of the shooting was to provoke public opinion and revive participation in the sit-in, they added.
When police intervened to control law and order after the attack, armed groups targeted police personnel with automatic weapons and ammunition, the sources said, adding that Rangers personnel deployed to assist police also arrived at the scene to help restore law and order.
According to security sources, the armed groups not only opened fire directly on the police with modern weapons, but also used improvised explosive devices. One Ranger member was killed and another injured in the attack, they said.
“Evidence confirms that the banned JAAC is pursuing an agenda of systematically challenging state orders. This horrific incident has exposed the so-called peaceful struggle and the true face of the banned Awami Joint Action Committee,” the experts said.
“The use of modern weapons and improvised explosive devices constitutes terrorism carried out as part of a well-planned strategy and has become a serious and deadly threat to the survival of ordinary people,” they added.
“The unprecedented sacrifices of security forces demonstrate that establishing and protecting state power is essential in all circumstances,” the experts added.
“Immediate, strict and indiscriminate legal action against armed groups involved in attacks on state institutions is an urgent need of the moment,” they added.
“A decisive security operation against armed outfits of the banned Awami Joint Action Committee has become inevitable to restore law and order in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) and establish state authority,” experts said.
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The AJK education department on Monday suspended 20 serving and retired employees from Rawalakot and Sudhnoti districts for allegedly participating in the JAAC sit-in protest in Rawalakot.
This decision comes as the government continues its disciplinary measures against civil servants linked to the protest movement.
According to official sources, the suspended employees are accused of participating in the ongoing protest. The ministry initiated disciplinary proceedings and appointed an investigator within the Ministry of Education to investigate the allegations and determine their veracity.
Among the suspended employees are 15 teachers, of whom 12 are active and three are retired. The rest of the staff includes three people, a laboratory assistant and a clerk.
Sources said the action follows an earlier move by Rawalakot divisional authorities, who compiled a list of around 100 serving and retired civil servants who allegedly participated in or facilitated sit-ins organized by the JAAC. The list was forwarded to the competent authorities for consideration of disciplinary measures.
