Lt Col Ajit Bhandarkay, Naik Pradeep Kumar and three other Rashtriya Rifle personnel were seriously injured in a fierce encounter at Faislabad in Surankote area of Poonch late Saturday evening, sources said, adding the Army officer and Naik later succumbed to their injuries.

Five foreign mercenaries were killed in the crossfire, they said, adding several militants fled into nearby forests.

In another encounter at Malechan in Surankote area, two militants were killed by security forces. Naik Gulzar Singh was also killed, the sources said.