Poonch encounter update: militants move to Rajouri, fighting resumes

The encounter between security forces and militants that began in Poonch on Monday morning has now moved to J&K’s Rajouri district, according to local reports.

Five Army personnel, including a Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO), were killed in a fierce gunfight with the militants during the anti-insurgency operation in Poonch.

Also watch: Target killings: Centre dispatches top anti-terror unit to Kashmir, says report

Officials said that the ultras opened heavy fire on the search parties resulting in critical injuries to the JCO and four other ranks. All the five soldiers succumbed to their injuries.

The killed soldiers are Sepoy Gajjan Singh, Naik Mandeep Singh and Naib Subedar Jaswinder Singh from Punjab, Sepoy Saraj Singh from UP and Sepoy Vaisakh H from Kerala, according to the list released by the Army.

The operation was launched in a village in Surankote in the early hours of Monday following intelligence inputs about presence of militants, a Defence spokesman said.

Another encounter is also under way in Tulran area of South Kashmir's Shopian. In a video that is being circulated from the encounter site, a police officer can be seen appealing to trapped militants to lay down their arms and surrender.