Five soldiers were killed in action and three were injured during a gunfight with terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir`s Poonch district today, the army said.
The encounter started after terrorists fired at two army vehicles passing through Dera Ki Gali in Rajouri`s Poonch region, at 3.45 pm yesterday.
The army, however, had been conducting an operation in and around Dera Ki Gali, also known as DKG area, since Wednesday night.
The encounter is going on.
"Based on hard intelligence, a joint operation was launched in the general area of DKG last night. Contact has been established this evening, and an encounter is in progress," a defence spokesperson said.
Last month, five soldiers including two Captains were killed in action after the army and its special forces launched an anti-terror operation in Rajouri`s Kalakote.
The region has become a hotbed of terrorists and a site of major attacks on the army over the past few years.
In April and May this year, 10 soldiers were killed in action in twin attacks in the Rajouri-Poonch region. This region had been largely free of terrorism between 2003 and 2021, after which frequent encounters started happening.
Over 35 soldiers have been killed in action during anti-terror operations in the area in the past two years.
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