Four terrorists were killed in a fierce gun-battle in Mendhar area of Poonch district on Friday. One Army jawan was also gunned down in the encounter, which began on Thursday. Sources said a Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO), Rakesh Kumar from the 39 Rashtriya Rifles, had been reported missing in the operation.

Col D K Kachari, PRO, Ministry of Defence, HQ Northern Command, said: “Four terrorists were killed in an encounter between militants and troops of 39 RR in Mendhar. Weapons and ammunition have been recovered. The operation is still in progress. One jawan was killed and one JCO is missing.”

While the killed terrorists were yet to be identified, a few others were still engaged in a gun-fight with the security forces.

Sources said the Special Operation Group of the J-K Police and the troops of 39 RR had launched a search following a specific input regarding presence of terrorists in the densely wooded Batidhar forest area under the jurisdiction of Mendhar police station a few days ago. The security forces zeroed in on the hiding terrorists on Thursday, following which an encounter commenced, sources said. They added that a large number of Army troops had been rushed to the area cordoned off to prevent the terrorists’ escape.