Two Pakistani troops and three militants were killed on Thursday in a rare firefightin the Chilas district in the northern Gilgit-Baltistan region.

Two Pakistani troops and three militants were killed on Thursday in a rare firefightin the Chilas district in the northern Gilgit-Baltistan region, a scenic tourist hub where the Himalayas, Karakoram and Hindu Kush mountain ranges converge.

"Three wanted terrorists were killed by security forces in a successful intelligence based operation," the military said in a statement.

It added: "The terrorists killed were involved in attacks on civil transport, tourists and security forces. Two security forces personnel also embraced shahadat (martyrdom) in exchange of fire."

A search operation is still underway, it added, and security forces have cordoned off the site in Gayal village.

The incident came two days after military courts sentenced 13 militants to death for terrorism-related offences, including the 2013 massacre of 10 foreign mountaineers in northern Pakistan.

Pakistan has been battling a homegrown terrorist insurgency for more a decade following its decision to side with the US-led coalition against the Taliban in Afghanistan.