The Foreign Office (FO) on Wednesday summoned Indian Deputy High Commissioner Gaurav Ahluwalia to lodge a protest against ceasefire violations along the Line of Control (LoC), which have resulted in several casualties during the last two days.
One elderly man was killed while five other civilians, including two women and three boys, were injured in Azad Jammu and Kashmir due to heavy shelling by Indian troops across the LoC on Monday. On Tuesday, three soldiers were martyred due to unprovoked firing in the Rakhchikri sector in Rawalkot. On the same day, an 18-year-old man was killed while three women were injured in unrelenting ceasefire violations by the Indian forces.
The FO pointed out that the Indian forces also ‘intentionally’ targeted a bus carrying civilians in the Bagsar Sector, which was ‘not only in clear violation of existing arrangement but also unethical and immoral’.
The Foreign Office warned that ceasefire violations by the Indian forces were ‘deplorable and contrary to human dignity, international human rights and humanitarian laws’ and posed a threat to the regional peace and stability. It also cautioned that unprovoked firing and shelling may lead to a strategic miscalculation.
The FO urged the Indian side to respect the 2003 ceasefire agreement and investigate this as well as other incidents of ceasefire violations and instruct Indian forces to respect the ceasefire in letter and spirit and maintain peace on the LoC and the Working Boundary.
“We are passing through a difficult phase in our relations with India. We are trying and have taken steps to de-escalate the tension but as our Prime Minister [Imran Khan] has said, we need to remain on alert,” Dr Faisal, Director General (SA&SAARC), told reporters in the federal capital. He also demanded that the Indian side must allow UNMOGIP [United Nations Military Observer Group In India and Pakistan] to play its mandated role as per the UN Security Council resolutions.
