Three Army personnel were killed in a gunfight with suspected militants in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kulgam district on Friday.

The Chinar Corps of the Army said in a tweet that a search operation had been launched after they received inputs about suspected militants in the higher reaches of the Halan forest area in Kulgam.

The gunfight started after the suspected militants fired upon a group of security forces that had erected a tent in the area as part of a military exercise, PTI reported, citing unidentified official.

In an exchange of fire during the operation, the three soldiers – Havaldar Babulal Haritwal, Signal Man Mahipalsinh Pravinsinh and Rifleman Waseem Sarwar – of 34 Rashtriya Rifles received bullet wounds and succumbed to their injuries during treatment.

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An unidentified police official told the news agency that reinforcement has been sent to the area and the search operation has been intensified.

Another search operation was launched on Saturday in the Kund area of Kulgam after the sound of an explosion was heard when Army vehicles were passing through, PTI reported.