Five soldiers of Pakistan Army were martyred and another sustained injuries in an explosion that took place a few metres from the Line of Control (LoC) in Chamb sector of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a statement on Wednesday.
“The incident is evidence of the state-sponsored terrorism by India violating bilateral ceasefire agreement and the international rules,” the ISPR said, adding that the nature of the blast, which took place in Barnala tehsil, is being ascertained.
The personnel martyred in the blast are: Subedar Muhammad Sadiq, 44, resident of village Bandi P/O Jura, tehsil Athmuqam and district Neelam; Sepoy Muhammad Tayyab, 26, resident of village Surakhi, tehsil and district Khushab; Naik Sher Zaman, 36, resident of village Shamashaki, district Karak; Sepoy Zohaib, 20, resident of village Nandi Nar Ghamir Manhdala, tehsil Hajira and district Poonch; Sepoy Ghulam Qasim, 22, resident of village Sahiwal, tehsil Sahiwal and district Sargodha.
While condemning the explosion, AJK President Sardar Masood Khan said India has been constantly violating the 2003 ceasefire agreement targeting civilian population. He paid tribute to the Pakistan Army for offering matchless sacrifices in defending the geographical frontiers of the country. “This incident has once again established that India is the sole enemy of peace and stability in the region,” he stressed.
“New Delhi is mistaken to believe that such acts can deter the Kashmiri people from their stance against India’s illegal occupation of their motherland,” he maintained, and called upon the international community to take strong exception to the situation and play its role in addressing the root cause of tension between Pakistan and India.
Tensions have been running high between India and Pakistan in the wake of a suicide attack on an Indian military convoy in Pulwama district of Indian-held Kashmir on February 14, which killed more than 40 paramilitary troops.
In what was the most serious military crisis in South Asia since 2008, Indian and Pakistani warplanes engaged in a dogfight on Feb 27, a day after a raid by Indian jet fighters on what New Delhi said was a militant camp in Pakistan. Islamabad denied any militant camp exists in the area and said the Indian bombs exploded on an empty hillside. Pakistan downed two Indian planes for violating its airspace and captured a pilot. The tensions de-escalated after Prime Minister Imran Khan decided to release the Indian pilot as a peace gesture, and following concerted diplomatic efforts by countries including the United States, China and the UAE.
Nevertheless, ceasefire violations along the de-factor border have been occurring regularly.
