Six IAF men killed as gunmen storm Indian air force base, Pakistan condemns attack
PATHANKOT: An operation to secure a militant-hit Indian air base near the Pakistan border ended on Saturday with six Indian security men and four suspected gunmen killed, police said, after an assault that threatens to undermine the two countries' fragile peace process.
At least four gunmen alleged to be from Jaish-i-Mohammed group dressed in army uniforms infiltrated the Pathankot air base in northern Punjab state at around 3:30 am.
The attack was a rare targeting of an Indian military installation outside disputed Kashmir.
Special commandos secured the Pathankot air force base 14 hours after it was infiltrated by gunmen wearing Indian army uniforms, officials said.
“We have recovered four dead bodies and are searching for more. Our men are sanitising the area,” H. S. Dhillon, a senior police chief for the Punjab region told AFP.
An army official confirmed the operation had ended and forces were checking the area for residual explosives.