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Four Pakistani soldiers killed by jihadis on LoC
Indian counter-infiltration action may have precipitated a clash between a jihadist group and a Pakistan army unit, which left four of its soldiers dead and three more injured.
However, highly-placed Indian military sources stationed in the area told The Hindu that the deaths were most likely the outcome of an accidental clash between Pakistani troops and a jihadist group. Soldiers from the 8 Gurkha Rifles 2nd Battalion, stationed in the Krishna Ghati sector of the LoC, reported seeing movement along the LoC at 11.30 a.m. Suspecting that an infiltration attempt was under way, the troops fired warning shots. Fire was returned from the Pakistani side of the LoC. The sources said sporadic exchanges of fire continued in the area, which lies due east of Hajira, until 4.30 p.m. Indian troops reported seeing two bodies lying near the LoC, but failed to locate either during searches in the evening. A senior army official said the clash most likely began when the retreating jihadists ran into a Pakistan army patrol. In the fog of the fighting, he said, it is possible the jihadis mistook the Pakistani army troops for an Indian ambush, or the other way around.
Last month, a soldier of the 8 Gurkha Rifles was killed after jihadists shelled an Indian forward post near Salhotri village, between Krishna Ghati and Mendhar. Jawashwar Lami Chhame, a Nepali national serving in the Indian Army, was killed. The fighting one of nine clashes involving jihadist groups that have taken place on the LoC this year came days after Indian troops interdicted an infiltrating group on the Tarkundi Gali pass. A militant was killed. Pakistan military spokesperson Major-General Athar Abbas confirmed that the soldiers deaths were not caused by Indian military action. The fire was not from the Indian bunkers, he said. Posted by: Fred 2008-06-20 |
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