Asia

Pakistan Summons Indian Diplomat Over Alleged Killing of Villager at Border

Pakistan has urged India to investigate incidents of repeated ceasefire violations and to instruct the Indian forces to respect the ceasefire, in letter and spirit.
Sputnik

Pakistan's Foreign Ministry summoned Indian Deputy High Commissioner JP Singh on Wednesday, the second time in a fortnight, amid reports that Indian troops had killed a Pakistani villager in "unprovoked firing" in the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir.

Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) said in a statement that Indian troops had killed Abdur Rauf in the Kotkotera Sector along the Line of Control on Tuesday while he was grazing animals.

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Pakistan has blamed India for the deliberate targeting of the civilian population and termed the act "deplorable and contrary to human dignity and international human rights and humanitarian laws."

"The ceasefire violations by India are a threat to regional peace and security and may lead to a strategic miscalculation," Pakistan's MoFA added.

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The ministry further claimed that Indian forces had killed 32 innocent Pakistani civilians since the beginning of 2018.

"[In 2018] the Indian Forces have carried out more than 2,000 ceasefire violations along the Line of Control and the Working Boundary, resulting in the martyrdom of 32 innocent civilians, while injuring 122 others. This unprecedented escalation in ceasefire violations by India is continuing from the year 2017 when the Indian forces committed 1,970 ceasefire violations," Pakistan's MoFA claimed on Wednesday.

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However, contrary to Pakistan's claims, India has been blaming Pakistani forces for ceasefire violations.  

"There have been 942 ceasefire violations along the Line of Control until July 23. In all of 2017, there had been 860 violations," Subhash Bhamre, India's minister of state for defense, told Parliament on July 30.

Pakistani and Indian troops often exchange fire in Kashmir along the UN-designated Line of Control, though for the last two years, the number of ceasefire violations from both sides have increased manifold. The two sides had signed a ceasefire agreement in 2003 to maintain peace at the border.

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