“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 after being hit by a bullet during the operation.In a first, the Army has also pressed 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 encounter in the Jammu region comes amid a surge in terrorist activities in Kashmir where seven attacks have occurred in the past two weeks, resulting in 13 fatalities, including two soldiers.
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