ISLAMABAD - President Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Sardar Masood Khan called on Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa here on Friday.

According to Pakistan military spokesman Maj-Gen Asif Ghafoor, the prevailing situation in the Indian-Occupied Kashmir and Indian provocations on the Line of Control (LOC) were discussed during the meeting.

The DG ISPR directorate said in a tweet that the COAS assured the AJK president of Pakistan Army’s full support and commitment to the Kashmir cause and its people.

Meanwhile, another soldier of Pakistan Army embraced martyrdom due to unprovoked firing by the Indian troops in Buttal sector along the Line of Control, DG Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) directorate Maj-Gen Asif Ghafoor said on Friday, a day after three soldiers were martyred in Indian shelling from across the LoC.

In a tweet on Friday morning, Ghafoor said that another brave son of the soil Sepoy Muhammad Sheeraz laid his life in the line of duty.

“Another brave son of the soil laid his life in the line of duty. Sepoy Muhammad Sheeraz embraced shahadat due to Indian firing in Buttal Sector along LOC,” said the tweet.

The incident comes a day after three Army soldiers — Naik Tanveer, Lance Naik Taimoor and Sepoy Ramzan — and two civilians were martyred in two sectors of Azad Jammu and Kashmir as Indian troops resorted to heavy shelling from across the restive LoC. A civilian was also injured in the firing.

In a tweet from his official account on Thursday, the ISPR chief had said that Indian army had increased firing along the LoC as part of “efforts to divert attention from [the] precarious situation in Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir”.

The Indian occupation forces along the LoC and Working Boundary have been violating the 2003 ceasefire arrangement. There has been a sharp increase in the violations over the past few years. The Indian provocation comes as occupied Kashmir is fuming with anger over New Delhi’s attempt to strip the disputed region off its semi-autonomous status, paving the way for outsiders to buy land and settle in the occupied valley.

INDIAN ENVOY SUMMONED AGAIN

Director General South Asia and SAARC Dr Mohammad Faisal on Friday summoned Indian Deputy High Commissioner Gaurav Ahluwalia and condemned the unprovoked ceasefire violations by the Indian occupation forces along the Line of Control (LoC) in Lipa and Buttal Sectors resulting in martyrdom of two civilians Muhammad Aziz and Muneeb and one armed forces personnel.

Dr Faisal urged the Indian side to instruct its forces to respect the ceasefire in letter and spirit and maintain peace on the LoC and the Working Boundary.

He said the Indian side should permit UNMOGIP (United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan) to play its mandated role as per the UN Security Council resolutions.

“The Indian occupation forces along the LoC and Working boundary have continuously been violating the 2003 ceasefire arrangement, which needs to be respected,” a Foreign Office statement said.

“The intended targeting of civilians is indeed condemnable. The ceasefire violations by India are a threat to regional peace and security and may lead to a strategic miscalculation,” it added.