Three soldiers were killed while two others were injured on Sunday in a PKK terrorist attack in Turkey's northern Ordu province.

An operation was earlier launched by security forces in the Mesudiye district upon a tip off that terrorists were in the area.

Ordu Governor İfran Balkanlıoğlu said that a group of an estimated 4-5 terrorists opened fire with automatic weapons from the woods while soldiers were passing.

"The first reports say two of our soldiers were injured. An operation is ongoing against the terrorists," Balkanlioglu said. "The Provincial Gendarmerie Commander has arrived on the scene as well."

A larger scale operation is underway to capture the terrorists.

The PKK-listed as a terrorist organization also by the U.S. and the EU-resumed its 30-year armed campaign against the Turkish state in July 2015.

Since then, over 600 security personnel, including troops, police officers, and village guards, have been martyred and more than 7,000 PKK terrorists killed or neutralized in operations across Turkey and northern Iraq.