Pakistan summons Indian envoy over ceasefire violations along LoC

Pakistan on Friday (October 25) summoned India’s Deputy High Commissioner Gaurav Ahluwalia and condemned the “unprovoked ceasefire violations” along the Line of Control that killed three Pakistani civilians.

The Director General (South Asia & SAARC) Mohammad Faisal told Ahluwalia that the ceasefire violations by India are a threat to regional peace and security and may lead to a strategic miscalculation. He alleged that India committed “unprovoked ceasefire violations in Shahkot and Khuiratta sectors on October 24 and due to indiscriminate and unprovoked firing by the Indian Army, three innocent civilians were killed and one was injured”.

Faisal further alleged that the Indian security forces along the LoC and Working Boundary have “continuously been targeting civilian populated areas with artillery fire, heavy-caliber mortars, and automatic weapons which still continues”.

Tension between India and Pakistan has spiked after New Delhi withdrew Jammu and Kashmir’s special status and bifurcated it into union territories — Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh. India has repeatedly urged Pakistan to “respect” the 2003 ceasefire arrangement between the two countries.