Security forces gunned down two terrorists on Tuesday morning holed up in a forest area near a village in the Akhnoor sector in Jammu and Kashmir, taking the number of militants killed in the 27-hour gunfight near the Line of Control (LoC) to three, officials said.
One of the three terrorists who opened fire at an ambulance that was part of an army convoy moving near the LoC on Monday morning was killed by evening in the operation that also saw action by special forces and NSG commandos and the use of BMP-II infantry combat vehicles.
The two other terrorists were reportedly killed on Tuesday within a period of two hours as joint teams of the army and the police launched the final assault near Assan temple in Jogwan village in the Battal-Khour area, officials said. Following overnight surveillance, "an intense firefight unfolded today morning resulting in a significant victory for our forces. Relentless operations and tactical excellence have led to the elimination of three terrorists."
The operation also saw war-like stores successfully recovered, a critical step to maintaining security in the region, the Jammu-based White Knight Corps of the Army said in a post on X. The officials said the dead terrorists are believed to have infiltrated from across the border Sunday night before surfacing outside the temple and targeting the army convoy.
"After a night-long lull, the security forces pushed for a final assault against the holed-up terrorists at around 7 am, leading to a fresh gunfight," an official said. A couple of deafening explosions followed by intense firing continued for over an hour before the second terrorist was killed, the officials said, adding intermittent exchange of fire continued for another hour before the third trapped ultra was eliminated.
A four-year-old valiant Army dog, Phantom, died in the operation after being hit by a bullet. In a first, the Army deployed its four BMP-II infantry combat vehicles for surveillance and strengthening the cordon around the attack site, while helicopters and drones were also deployed to locate the hiding terrorists. The latest incident in the Jammu region has come at a time when terror attacks in Kashmir have seen a spurt, with seven attacks having taken place in the last fortnight that have claimed 13 lives, including two soldiers.
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