A soldier was killed when militants fired at an army patrol in a mountainous, forested area of Kishtwar district in Jammu and Kashmir, police said on Thursday.
A senior police official said an army patrol of 159 Territorial Army was on duty in Kulna Palmar areas of Kishtwar district, about 250 km northeast of Jammu, late on Wednesday. The patrol party suddenly came under fire from militants hiding in the area.
A soldier, Noor Mohammad, died in the firing, police said.
The patrol party returned the fire but 'the militants managed to escape', police said. The hand of top Hizbul Mujahideen militant Jehangir Saroori is suspected in the incident.
This is the second army casualty in Kishtwar district in the past three days. Rakesh Kumar, a soldier, was killed in firing by militants on April 30.