Terrorists struck for the third time in 10 days in south Kashmir’s Shopian district on Thursday, killing two non-Kashmiri truck drivers, who had gone to transport loads of apples.

One of the senior officials said, “It’s an unfortunate incident. The truck drivers had ventured into interior areas without informing the security forces.”

The bodies of the two truck drivers have been recovered and transferred one to a hospital in Srinagar.

Director-General of Police – Dilbagh Singh said that the terrorists fired at trucks near Chittargam in Shopian and injured three drivers.

The terrorists stopped the three trucks with registration numbers of Haryana, Rajasthan and Punjab and started firing at the drivers who made a failed attempt to escape.

One of the dead has been identified as Mohammed Illiyas, a resident of Alwar in Rajasthan, while the injured has been identified as Jeevan from Hoshiarpur in Punjab. The identity of the other truck driver is being ascertained.

As of the now, the teams of police have been deployed to nab the terrorists. According to the sources, the terrorists have been targeting labourers, who have come to Jammu and Kashmir from other states to create fear among them and disrupt trade.

The recent attack comes almost a week after an apple trader was killed by terrorists in the same district. As of now, Shopian has witnessed three killings within a month. On October 14, two terrorists killed a truck driver bearing the number plate of Rajasthan.

According to the police, the terrorists are trying to stall the transportation of fruits as the fruit business has recently picked up after the abrogation of Article 370.

Also Read: Three Non-Kashmiris Killed By Terrorists In South Kashmir