The Wire Staff 
Srinagar: An anti-insurgency operation in Akhnoor district of Jammu and Kashmir came to an end on Tuesday morning (October 29) with the killing of three suspected militants, the army said.
An encounter broke out on Monday morning when a group of militants tried to ambush an army ambulance in Khour sector of Akhnoor which falls on the Line of Control in Jammu division, and later fled from the area using the cover of a dense canopy of greens.
However, no one was injured in the attack which took place at around 7 am and additional reinforcements were sent to the area following which one of the militants was gunned down on Monday.
Officials said that his body was recovered along with arms and ammunition from the spot. However, his identity has not been confirmed so far.
As security forces tightened the cordon and searches were underway in the area, the hiding militants opened fire on an army dog identified as Phantom who later succumbed to injuries.
“We salute the supreme sacrifice of our true hero — a valiant Indian Army dog, Phantom,” the Army’s Jammu-based White Knight Corps said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, adding that his “courage, loyalty, and dedication will never be forgotten”.
With the army having established contact with the militants, surveillance was mounted in the area during the intervening night of Monday and Tuesday. At around 8 am, an intense firefight broke out during which both the militants were killed near Assan temple in Jogwan village.
The temple is also believed to have suffered some damage during the intense exchange of gunfire between the two sides.
“After round the clock surveillance throughout the night, an intense firefight unfolded today morning resulting in a significant victory for our forces. Relentless operations and tactical excellence has led to the elimination of three terrorists. The operation also saw the successful recovery of war-like stores, marking a critical step in maintaining security in the region,” the White Knight Corps said.
The identities or the affiliation of the slain militants has not been ascertained so far.
Following a high-level security review meeting earlier this month, the border districts of Samba, Kathua, Jammu, Poonch and Rajouri in Jammu division have been put on a high alert.
Attacks in Pir Panjal
Since 2021, there has been an uptick in attacks and ambush-style raids on security forces in Pir Panjal region where small groups of highly-trained militants have been posing a stiff challenge to the country’s security apparatus.
The attackers have sometimes spilled over into the plains of Jammu and Chenab Valley also where they have targeted pilgrims and security forces alike, triggering a wave of fear and anxiety across Jammu division.
Nearly five dozen army and police officials besides many civilians have been gunned down in these targeted attacks over the past three years with the militants, who occupy strategic heights in the forested areas which also enables them to film some of these attacks, suffering little to no damage .
Most attacks have been claimed by the Peoples Anti-Fascist Front (PAFF) while The Resistance Front (TRF) has also claimed responsibility for some. In some instances, the two groups have also released the horrifying video footage on social media.
New groups emerge since Article 370 move
The PAFF and the TRF sprung on J&K’s insurgency landscape in the aftermath of the reading down of Article 370. Security agencies believe that the two groups are the offshoots of Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad and Lashkar-e-Toiba respectively which have been floated to mislead the world about the involvement of Islamabad in terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir.
The shootout in Khour was the fifth targeted attack by militants in Jammu and Kashmir after Omar Abdullah was sworn in as the first chief minister of the Union territory earlier this month.
In one of the deadliest attacks this month, two army soldiers and two civilian porters were gunned down when militants ambushed an army truck in the north Kashmir ski resort of Gulmarg. Three more soldiers were wounded in the attack on October 24 but their condition is reported to be stable.
A migrant worker from Uttar Pradesh was shot and injured in Awantipora police district of south Kashmir on October 23. Shubham Kumar, a resident of Bijnore district, survived with minor injuries.
On October 20, a Kashmiri doctor and six workers were killed when two suspected militants surfaced inside the base camp of Apco Infra Ltd in central Kashmir’s Ganderbal district and resorted to indiscriminate firing.
The attackers were caught on CCTV camera, seemingly going from door to door at the base camp for the staff of the Lucknow-based private infrastructure development company which was roped in for building the strategic Z-Morh tunnel on Srinagar-Leh highway.
The tunnel, which is expected to cut down time in mobilising troops from Kashmir to Ladakh, was expected to be thrown open this month.
On October 18, 30-year-old Ashok Chauhan, a migrant worker from Bihar was abducted from Malhura area of Shopian in south Kashmir, Later, the bullet-riddled body of Chauhan was recovered near Rambiara river, prompting the police to launch a probe into his killing.
The string of attacks is likely to bring Abdullah’s government under intense spotlight, even though the law and order in Jammu and Kashmir and security are under the control of the Bhartiya Janta Party-led Union government.
Note: An earlier version of the piece had erroneously identified 8 pm as the time when the firefight broke out in Jogwan. It is 8 am.