Homage paid to Army elite dog fallen in gunfight with J&K militants

SRINAGAR: A military ceremony was held at an Army base in Jammu and Kashmir’s Baramulla district on Sunday to bid farewell to an elite assault dog ‘Axel’ who fell to the militants’ bullets during a gunfight in the district’s Wanigam Bala village a day ago.

A defence spokesperson here said that senior Army and J&K police officers including Major General S.S.Salaria, the GOC of the Kilo Force, attended the wreath-laying ceremony held at the headquarters of the 10^th sector of the counterinsurgency Rashtriya Rifles at Hyder Baig outside the highway town of Pattan to pay homage to the slain dog.

“Wreaths were laid by the KILO force commander, the officers of the 10 sector RR and 29 RR and representatives of the J&K police. Also, the Officer Commanding of the 26 Army Dog Unit and Axel's handler paid last respects to the fallen canine,” the spokesman added.

The gunfight during which the Army assault dog laid down his life had left a newly recruited militant of the Jaish-e-Muhammad Akhtar Hussain Bhat alias Abid Bhai dead and two Army jawans and a J&K policeman injured.

Meanwhile, another local militant identified as Irshad Ahmed Bhat was killed in a gunfight with the security forces in Baramulla’s Binner area on Sunday. “As per police records, the killed terrorist was active since May 2022. Before joining terrorist ranks the killed terrorist was working as a terrorist associate of proscribed Hizb-ul-Mujahideen along with his father who was a terrorist commander of the terror outfit got killed in year 2015 at Devbug (Baramulla),” a statement issued by the police here said. End it