Quicksplained: Who was Phantom, the Indian Army dog that died in J&K anti-terror operation?

Loyal till the end, Phantom, stood his ground.

The Indian Army was closing in on terrorists trapped in the Sunderbani sector of Jammu and Kashmir’s Akhnoor. Phantom, a member of the army unit conducting the anti-terror operation, took on enemy fire and suffered bullet wounds while fulfilling his duty. He eventually sacrificed his life in service.

The incident occurred near the Asan region in the Sunderbani sector of Akhnoor. During the operation, the army successfully killed all three terrorists and recovered several warlike materials.

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Notably, the gunfight began around 7 am when terrorists launched an attack on an ambulance that was part of an army convoy in the Battal area of Akhnoor’s Khour, located roughly 85 km from Jammu city.

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Here’s all you need to know about Phantom and the J&K anti-terror operation:

1. The four-year-old Army dog was killed by a bullet fired by terrorists during an encounter in the Akhnoor sector on Monday.

2. Born on May 25, 2020, the male Belgian Malinois was an assault dog and was assigned to a unit on August 12, 2022, after graduating from the Remount Veterinary Corps in Uttar Pradesh’s Meerut, according to army officials.

3. In a statement on X, the White Knight Corps said that his “courage, loyalty and dedication” will never be forgotten. “We salute the supreme sacrifice of our true hero - a valiant #IndianArmy Dog, #Phantom. As our troops were closing in on the trapped terrorists, #Phantom drew enemy fire, sustaining fatal injuries. His courage, loyalty, and dedication will never be forgotten,” it wrote on X.

4. All three terrorists involved in the attack on the Army convoy passing through a village near the Line of Control (LoC) in Akhnoor were killed on Tuesday morning during anti-terror operations.

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5. Phantom served as an assault dog in the K9 unit, a specialised team of trained canines participating in anti-terror and counter-insurgency missions.

6. Army dogs are usually equipped with gadgets that enable them to gather intelligence on enemy positions from a close range.

7. Notably, the terrorists had opened fire on an Army ambulance. Following this, the area was cordoned off, and a joint search operation was initiated by the Jammu and Kashmir police along with security forces. According to the White Knight Corps, swift retaliation by Army troops stopped the attack attempt.

#WATCH | Akhnoor, Jammu and Kashmir | One terrorist has been gunned down and two have been hiding after terrorists fired upon an Army convoy near Asan, Sunderbani Sector in the morning

BMP-II, Infantry Combat Vehicle which is also known as APC 'Sarath' (BMP-II) deployed as… pic.twitter.com/2OXK3xTkDn

— ANI (@ANI) October 28, 2024

8. For the first time, the Army also deployed four BMP-II infantry combat vehicles for surveillance and to strengthen the cordon around the attack site, while helicopters and drones were dispatched to locate the hiding terrorists.

9. The Akhnoor incident follows a series of terrorist attacks in Jammu and Kashmir over the past few months, which has led the central government to take several search operations in the valley.

10. In 2023, a six-year-old Army dog named Kent was killed while saving a soldier’s life during an encounter in Jammu and Kashmir. The female Labrador-type dog from the 21st Army dog unit lost her life while attempting to protect her handler in the Rajouri district of the Union Territory.

With inputs from agencies