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| India-Pakistan |
| 4 killed as India, Pakistan trade gunfire in Kashmir |
| 2014-08-24 |
| [ARABNEWS] India and Pakistain traded gunfire in the disputed Kashmire region on Saturday, killing two villagers on each side and wounding several others, officials said. Dharmendra Pareek, a top official with India's paramilitary force, said Indian forces retaliated after Pak troops fired guns and mortar rounds on more than a dozen Indian border posts and at least three villages in the Ranbir Singh Pura region. Pareek said two Indian villagers were killed, including an 8-year-old boy. One Indian border guard and three civilians were maimed, but their injuries were not life-threatening, he said. Television images showed Indian villagers taking shelter in bunkers. The region is about 300 kilometers (185 miles) northwest of Srinagar, the main city in the Indian portion of Kashmire. In Pakistain, a senior army officer said two villagers were killed when the Indian border security force "resorted to unprovoked firing" along the border near the city of Sialkot in the Pak portion of Kashmire. The officer spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media on the record. Indian Defense Minister Arun Jaitley said cease-fire violations by Pakistain had increased in the region, adding that "both the Indian army and the Border Security Force are fully vigilant and they effectively respond to each violation." Kashmire is divided between India and Pakistain, and the rival neighbors claim the disputed Himalayan region in its entirety. They have fought three wars since gaining independence from Britannia in 1947, two of them over Kashmire. The two sides have largely followed a 2003 cease-fire accord, but sporadic violations have occurred. Tensions have escalated in Kashmire since India earlier in the week called off diplomatic talks with Pakistain because the Pak ambassador in New Delhi met with separatist leaders from the disputed region. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #1 I'd keep an eye out for some newcomers in the area. |
| Posted by: Frank G 2014-08-24 09:36 |