India’s deputy commissioner summoned over deaths of Pak Army soldiers

The Director General of the South Asia Division at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dr Mohammad Faisal, on Tuesday summoned the Indian Deputy High Commissioner Mr J P Singh to lodge a formal complaint on the firing incident at the Line of Control on Monday night which resulted in the deaths of three Pakistani Army Soldiers.

Three Pakistan Army soldiers were killed in the incident, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) reported on Monday evening.

The incident had occurred in the Thob sector of Bhimber district.

ISPR had identified the slain soldiers as Naik Ghulam Rasool, Naik Imran Zafar and Sepoy Imam Buksh.

Dr Faisal urged the Indian army to respect the 2003 ceasefire agreement, and insisted that an investigation be carried out on the latest and previous ceasefire violations by Indian forces.

Previous deaths
On November 14. 2016, seven Pakistani soldiers were killed in cross-border firing by Indian forces. The incident occurred in the Bhimber district of the LoC.

In another incident on November 24, three Pakistan Army soldiers were killed and ISPR claimed the killing of seven Indian soldiers in the same incident.

Tense relations

Incidents of cross-border firing were reported with frequency in the last months of 2016 as tensions simmered between Pakistan and India over the Kashmir issue. Exchanges of fire have been reported sporadically since the new year began.

Pakistan maintains that India is attempting to divert the world’s attention away from ‘atrocities’ committed by government forces in India-held Kashmir.

The two countries have locked horns over the Kashmir issue after Indian forces stepped up a crackdown against protesters after Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani was killed by government forces in July.

Source: Dawn