As many as soldiers were killed in action, while three others were injured during a gun battle with terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch district, the army said.

The gunfight started after terrorists ambushed two army vehicles passing through Dera Ki Gali in Rajouri's Poonch region at 3:45 pm today.

The military had been carrying out a mission in the vicinity of Dera Ki Gali, also referred to as DKG area, since Thursday night. The encounter is still underway.

"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.

In the previous month, an anti-terror operation in Rajouri's Kalakote resulted in the deaths of five soldiers, including two Captains, during the army and its special forces' engagement in action.

The area has turned into a center of terrorist activity and has experienced significant assaults on the military in recent years.

Between April and May of this year, twin attacks in the Rajouri-Poonch region resulted in the deaths of 10 soldiers. This area had experienced minimal terrorism from 2003 to 2021, but encounters have become more frequent since then.

More than 35 military personnel have lost their lives while carrying out counter-terrorism missions in the region over the last two years.