At least one civilian was killed while seven others were injured in a village in Azad Jammu and Kashmir in yet another unprovoked ceasefire violation by Indian forces from across the Line of Control (LoC), local officials said on Monday.
According to Zaheer, a disaster management official in Haveli, Indian forces began shelling and firing in the Nezapir sector at about 3:45pm and in Khurshidabad sector at around 6pm on Sunday ‘without any provocation’. “They used both small and big arms and targeted civilian populations, restricting people indoors till late night,” he said. Rehmat Jan, a 45-year-old woman who lived in Mandhar village, died after being hit by the splinters of a mortar shell, Zaheer said. Another resident of the village, Begum Jan (48), was injured due to Indian shelling, he said. Three civilians – Zainab Jan (60), Naeem Dar (24) and Ulfat Rashid (17) – were injured in Kairni village while Munir Hussain (20), Kausar Parveen (26) and Nosheen (18) were wounded in Kachar Ban.
Haveli Deputy Commissioner Raja Arshad Mahmood said that since the affected villages are located near the LoC, details of the firing reached authorities late on Sunday night. “After verification of each incident, the same has been communicated to the offices concerned in Muzaffarabad,” he said.
Foreign Office Spokesperson Dr Faisal summoned Indian Deputy High Commissioner Gaurav Ahluwalia to lodge protest over the recent violation of the 2003 ceasefire agreement, a press release by the ministry said. He termed the targeting of the civilian population as ‘deplorable and contrary to human dignity, international human rights and humanitarian laws’, and urged the Indian side to respect the ceasefire agreement. “The ceasefire violations by India are a threat to regional peace and security and may lead to a strategic miscalculation,” it added. Saeed Qureshi, a senior director at State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA), said that after the latest ceasefire violation, the civilian death toll in the current year has increased to 22, including 13 men and nine women.
