Operation Sohan: Army, J&K Police and CRPF Kill Two Suspected JeM Terrorists in Udhampur Encounter

A joint counter-terrorism operation — 'Operation Sohan' — by the Indian Army's White Knight Corps, Jammu & Kashmir Police and CRPF killed two suspected Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) terrorists during the intervening night of September 16-17, 2026 in the Brattal Sohan and Khubban forest areas of Majalta tehsil, Udhampur district, near the Kathua district border. The operation followed confirmed intelligence inputs on terrorist presence in the area; troops launched a cordon-and-search operation despite hostile weather, difficult high-altitude terrain and poor visibility, resulting in a gunfight in which the two terrorists were killed and arms and ammunition recovered. Some outlets identified the slain men as Saddam and Mustafa, both Pakistani nationals, though the White Knight Corps' initial statement said identities were still being ascertained. No security-force casualties were reported. Search and surveillance operations, including sniffer dogs and aerial assets, continued in the area into September 18, alongside a separate, recently disclosed operation in Rajouri targeting a Lashkar-e-Taiba overground-worker network.