A group of four terrorists stormed the Pathankot Air

Force base early on Saturday morning, killing six services personnel and injuring 18 after a fierce gun
battle through the day, before being shot dead. The attack raised the spectre of cross-border terror yet
again challenging peace efforts between India and Pakistan.
Sketchy information available from official sources said one Garud commando of the Air Force and two
Defence Security Corps personnel were among those dead.
Statements from both New Delhi and Islamabad indicated that the attack wouldnt immediately scuttle
the December 25 initiative of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to drop in at Lahore in a surprise
diplomatic effort to bring momentum back to the engagement that had suffered repeated setbacks since
the NDA government came to power in May 2014.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, Enemies of humanity who cant see India progress, such elements
attacked in Pathankot but our security forces did not let them succeed.
His Cabinet colleagues including Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh said India wants peaceful
relations with Pakistan, which was quick to condemn the attack.
The attack was the culmination of several dramatic hours that began on December 30-31 night, when
the terrorists are suspected to have sneaked into India from Pakistan. Sometime around early Friday
morning they intercepted a Superintendent of Police, Salwinder Singh, and two other men travelling in
a blue beacon-mounted SUV near Dinanagar. The terrorists thrashed them, dumped the SP on the road
a few kilometres away and slashed another person.
For several crucial hours, Mr. Singhs claim of being intercepted by terrorists found no takers in the
establishment, and much time was lost. According to sources, the terrorists used a phone snatched from
the captives to make repeated calls to Pakistan. This was picked up by intelligence agencies, confirming
the presence of terrorists in the area. Based on those intercepts,the security establishment began to
piece together the security threat and stepped up combing operations.
The attack bore a close resemblance to the July 27, 2015 terror strike in Dinanagar. National Security
Adviser Ajit Doval convened a high-level meeting, and extra forces from the Army and State police were
rushed to the area. In spite of those measures, the terrorists struck around 3.30 a.m. at the Air Force
base, where MIG-21 fighters and MI-25 and Mi-35 attack helicopters are based.

I was awake at the staff quarters next to where Division number 2 police station is. I heard the
gunshots and even before I could make any sense of them the wireless message was flashed from the
police control room, Jagtar Singh, an assistant SI of the local police station told The Hindu outside the
base.