5 Pakistan Army posts destroyed in retaliatory action

SRINAGAR: India on Wednesday said that its troops destroyed, at least, five forward posts of Pakistan Army along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch and Rajouri districts. The action, it said, was taken in retaliation to “unprovoked” and “indiscriminate” firing and shelling resorted to by the Pakistani troops in violation of the November 2003 ceasefire understanding soon after the IAF struck at the Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) camp at Balakot.  

The Army also said that it is giving a “befitting” reply to a similar pastime of the Pakistani troops in the Kamalkot area of Uri sector in the Kashmir Valley.

The Army said that five Pakistani posts were destroyed late Tuesday night. Defence Ministry Spokesperson Lt. Col. Devender Anand said the firing resulted in several casualties on the Pakistani side.

He said that the Pakistani troops initiated unprovoked ceasefire violation by shelling with heavy calibre weapons at 12 to 15 places along the LoC from 6.30 pm onwards. Pakistani troops were also seen “firing mortars and missiles from civilian houses using villagers as human shields”, he claimed.

The spokesman said that the Indian Army retaliated and its focused firing resulted in severe destruction of five Pakistani posts and a number of casualties to the enemy. He also said that five Indian soldiers sustained minor injuries in the Pakistani firing.

The areas affected by the Pakistani firing include Krishna Gate, Balakote, Mankote, Karmara and Tarkundi areas of Poonch and Kalal, Baba Khori, Kalsian, Laam and Jhangar in Rajouri. Cross border clashes were reported also from Pallanwala and Laleali sub-sectors in Akhnoor sector of Jammu district.

The two sides clashed also in Kamalkote area of Uri. A few Pakistani shells landed in Kamalkote nallah and near Kaalgi village of Uri.