A fresh encounter ensued between security forces and terrorists holed up in the upper reaches of Kishtwar district on Thursday, officials said.
The search operation was initiated in Sonnar village near Singhpora in the Chatroo belt on Sunday, leading to a gunfight that left one Special Forces jawan dead and eight other soldiers injured.
After days of searches, fresh contact was established with the hiding terrorists in the forest area of Singhpora on Thursday morning, officials said.
They said intense firing between both sides was ongoing when the last reports were received, and efforts were underway to neutralise the terrorists active in the area.
According to officials, a major hideout was unearthed near the encounter site on Monday, and several individuals were picked up for questioning.
A group of two to three terrorists, allegedly affiliated with the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), are believed to be trapped in the area.
Meanwhile, reinforcements have been dispatched to the area to speed up Operation TRASHI-I.
Security forces have also launched simultaneous search operations across dozens of locations, including the Rajouri, Poonch, Samba, Kathua, Udhampur and Doda districts of Jammu.
This is the third confrontation between security forces and terrorists in the Jammu region in less than three weeks. The previous encounters occurred in the Billawar area of the Kathua district on January 7 and 13, respectively.
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