Poonch Terror Attack: ALPINE offline navigation app was used to escape the Indian Army after attack

JAMMU: Terrorists involved in the Dera Ki Gali attack on the Indian Army, in the Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir, had used Alpine navigation app to escape after the attack, intelligence agencies involved in the investigation have confirmed. The offline application – ALPINE – was used by the terrorists to escape, and get back to the pre-identified hideout after the attack on the evening of 21 December.

Sources in the investigation agency told Republic that this is the second instance of the Alpine app being used, that has surfaced this year. Earlier, it was during the attack that took place on May 5, in which five soldiers of the special forces of the Indian Army lost their lives. The source further revealed that this is being done by gorilla-warfare trained terrorist(s) to evade tracking by agencies as this is an offline app that leaves no digital traces when used.

In the past four years, there have been multiple instances wherein agencies have traced the use of Alpine app and also offline messengers used by the terrorists for communication. The increasing use of offline apps by terrorists in the attacks is becoming a headache for the security agencies as it helps the terrorists save a fixed route, and then return to their base without any hindrance.

According to sources, all the attacks are being carried out in a strategic manner, keeping in view the timing of the day; all attacks in Poonch and Rajouri districts have been carried out in late afternoon so that when terrorists escape from the spot, it is already dark and the security forces won't have the help of the day light to trace them.

Four soldiers of the Indian Army attained martyrdom, while three others were injured in a deadly attack on the Indian Army convoy in the DKG area of Poonch district on the evening of December 21, when forces were moving as an additional reinforcement to the troops already carrying out the cordon and search operation in the area. The Army has maintained that it was an operation launched an evening prior to the attack based on hard intelligence.

Indian Army chief General Manoj Pandey had visited the troops, and directed them to carry out operations in a professional manner after the unfortunate incident of December 22 in which three civilians were killed. Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is visiting Jammu and Rajouri today to review the operational preparedness, and also to hold a high-level security review meeting at the Raj Bhawan in Jammu.