| Tyson's Kishtwar heroics earn Presidential honour | | The wounded war dog helped take down 3 terrorists, including a JeM commander, in Kishtwar | |  Early Times Report
Jammu, Aug 16: He crawled toward gunfire, took a bullet in the leg, and refused to retreat — and now, an Indian Army German Shepherd named Tyson has become one of the most unlikely names on this year's Independence Day honours list. Tyson, an assault dog attached to the elite 2 Para Special Forces, has been awarded a Mention-in-Despatches (MiD) for what the citation describes as "bravery and extraordinary courage" during a fierce anti-terror operation in the remote hills of Kishtwar.
The four-legged soldier's name featured among 89 Mention-in-Despatches approved by President Droupadi Murmu on the eve of Independence Day 2026, formally recognising his role in Operation Rakshak earlier this year — placing him in the same league of honour as the human personnel who fought alongside him.
The operation that would earn Tyson his place in military history unfolded in February, in the rugged Chhatroo belt of Kishtwar. Acting on intelligence, a joint team of the Army, Jammu and Kashmir Police, and the CRPF converged on the Passerkot area, where terrorists were believed to be holed up inside a mud hutment — locally known as a dhok — nestled in the unforgiving mountain terrain.
With the hideout's exact location unconfirmed and the risk of an ambush high, it was Tyson who was sent in first. Crawling low and silent toward the suspected structure, the Army-trained K9 picked up the scent and presence of the hiding terrorists and began closing in — only for the militants to open fire the moment he got close, striking him in his front right leg.
What happened next is what turned Tyson from a working dog into a decorated one. Wounded and bleeding, he did not turn back. He pressed forward, drawing enemy fire and, in doing so, giving the trailing troops exactly what they needed — a confirmed fix on the terrorists' position. It was a moment of instinct and training fused into raw courage, and it changed the course of the encounter.
Guided by the intelligence Tyson had risked his life to provide, security forces closed in and eliminated three Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorists in the ensuing gunfight. Among the slain was Saifullah Baloch, a senior JeM commander who had reportedly infiltrated into Jammu and Kashmir years earlier and was wanted for multiple attacks on security forces — making the operation a significant counter-terror success.
Tyson, wounded but alive, was swiftly airlifted for medical treatment. Officials confirmed he was stable and on the road to recovery in the aftermath of the operation.
Tyson belongs to the Army's Remount Veterinary Corps, a specialised unit that trains dogs for high-risk counter-insurgency roles — from tracking terrorists across hostile terrain to sniffing out hidden explosives. Unlike conventional service animals, assault dogs like Tyson are trained to operate deep in dangerous zones, locating concealed threats and helping troops pinpoint the exact positions of hostile forces before a single soldier is put in the line of fire.
His actions in Kishtwar have once again spotlighted the indispensable — and often overlooked — role military K9s play in India's counter-terror grid, particularly in the treacherous, high-altitude terrain of Jammu and Kashmir, where visibility, cover, and the element of surprise can mean the difference between life and death.
With the President's Mention-in-Despatches now formally sealing his place in this year's honours, Tyson stands recognised not as a mascot or an accessory to the mission, but as a soldier in every sense that mattered — one who bled for the operation's success and kept advancing when every instinct might have said otherwise. |
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