The Pakistan Foreign Ministry has announced that it had summoned Indian diplomat Gaurav Ahluwalia over alleged civilian casualties in cross-border fire.
According to a statement made by the Pakistani ministry, a total of four "civilians" were injured on 1 April, while the following day, "an eighteen years old boy and resident of Jugal Pal, was martyred and 3 women namely Fareeda Begum, Azmat Begum and Rehmat Bibi residents of Jigot Bahadur sustained injuries in Kotkottera and Khuiratta Sectors along LoC."
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While New Delhi has yet to comment on the allegations, Islamabad has also accused Indian troops of intentionally targeting civilians travelling in a civil bus in Bagsar Sector, describing the alleged move as a "clear violation of existing arrangement but also unethical and immoral."
Pakistan alleged that "Indian forces along the Line of Control and the Working boundary are continuously targeting civilian populated areas with heavy weapons."
"This unprecedented escalation in ceasefire violations by India is continuing from the year 2017 when the Indian forces committed 1970 ceasefire violations," the country's Foreign Office added.
Territorial disputes over Kashmir and activities of insurgents in the region have long been a source of tensions in relations between India and Pakistan, which fought several wars over Kashmir. The tensions dangerously escalated in February when the Indian Air Force carried out an airstrike against what it claimed to be a camp of Jaish-e-Mohammed militants on the Pakistani side of Kashmir in retaliation for the deadly attack on Indian paramilitary convoy earlier that month.
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The row culminated the following day, when Pakistan and India engaged in a dogfight over Kashmir, resulting in the downing of Pakistan's F-16 and Indian MiG-21. The pilot of the Indian jet was captured by Pakistan and later released, with Prime Minister Imran Khan calling the move a "peace gesture."
However, since then, both Indian and Pakistani forces have remained on alert on the Kashmir border, with the sides' clashes on the border resulting in casualties.
