India's violation of LoC invites retaliation

ISLAMABAD  - Pakistan said Thursday Indian forces fired mortars and small arms on its troops deployed at a forward post along the Line of Control, a senior military official said. Pakistani troops fired back in retaliation but there was no immediate report of casualties in the exchange. The Indian army confirmed an incident on the heavily militarised border but said its troops had fired at suspected infiltrators and not Pakistani troops. The incident occurred at Battal in Rawalakot sector on the Line of Control, chief military spokesman Maj-General Athar Abbas told AFP. "Indians fired two mortars and small arms on a Pakistani check post at 2:00 pm (0800 GMT)," Abbas said. Abbas said Pakistani soldiers retaliated with mortars and small arms, adding that a protest was communicated through a hot line across the border. "Pakistan is demanding an immediate meeting at the level of Directors-General Military Operations," he said. An American news agency quoted Abbas as saying that the Indian firing was without any provocation. "The Indian army is to be blamed for the breach of cease-fire," Maj Abbas said. Speaking in Jammu on the Indian side of the LoC, Indian army spokesman S D Goswami told AFP that that the shooting was to "prevent infiltration by a group " into India. "Soldiers were successful in their effort. They never fired at Pakistani troops," he said. He in turn accused Pakistani soldiers of simultaneously firing at Indian positions with small and medium arms close to the place where the some people were trying to infiltrate. "We did not retaliate at all," the spokesman said, There were no causalities on the either side, Indian officials added. He said that in a separate incident Thursday in the same area, Pakistani soldiers opened fire on Indian positions but: "We didn't retaliate." Maj Abbas declined to respond to the Indian allegations.

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