Fresh gunfire at Indian Air Force base in Pathankot – police

PATHANKOT, India – A fresh gunbattle erupted Sunday, January 3, at the Indian Air Force base in Pathankot, where 11 people died in an attack by suspected Islamic militants, police said.

Officers said they believe up to two gunmen were hiding inside the air base in the northern state of Punjab near the border with Pakistan, which came under attack on Saturday.

“We suspect one or two terrorists are hiding inside. They are firing intermittently,” Pathankot police chief Kunwar Vijay Partap Singh told AFP.

An AFP reporter near the site also confirmed gunfire from inside the base.

A police official, who requested not to be named, told AFP that soldiers came under fire as they were clearing explosives from the site.     

Loud explosions were also heard at the heavily guarded air base in the early hours of Sunday, but it was unclear if the blasts were controlled explosions or gunfire.

Gunmen, suspected to be from the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed Islamist group, launched a pre-dawn attack Saturday on the key base.

Seven soldiers, including an army lieutenant-colonel, and 4 attackers were killed in the ensuing gunbattle that lasted 14 hours. – Rappler.com