Two soldiers were killed in action during a fierce gunbattle with terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir's Kishtwar, a senior army officer said.
In a separate encounter in Kathua, troops of the Rising Star Corps shot dead two terrorists.
The army in a statement said based on intelligence inputs, a joint operation with Jammu and Kashmir Police was launched in Chatroo at Kishtwar. Contact was established with terrorists at 1530 hours. In the ensuing firefight, two soldiers were killed in action, the army said. The operation is going on.
The gunbattle in Kishtwar's Chatroo began after the security forces launched an operation in the area. The encounter is still going on, the White Knight Corps said in a post on X.
The same terrorists involved in the encounter in Kishtwar are linked to another encounter in Doda in July, when four soldiers including an officer were killed in action, sources said.
The encounters happened days before voting in eight assembly segments spread across Doda, Kishtwar and Ramban districts in the Chenab valley region, along with 16 seats in the south Kashmir districts of Anantnag, Pulwama, Shopian and Kulgam on September 18.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to campaign in Jammu and Kashmir tomorrow.
Jammu, Kathua and Samba districts will vote in the second and third phases on September 25 and October 1, respectively.
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