Indian forces kill three soldiers, Pakistan says

Pakistan said Tuesday that Indian forces killed three of its soldiers near the Line of Control in the disputed Kashmir region.

A military statement said the “unprovoked cease-fire violation” took place Monday in Rawalakot in the Pakistan-controlled part of Kashmir. It came two days after India’s army said four of its soldiers were killed by Pakistani fire along the de facto border between the South Asian rivals.

In the latest shooting, the Indian military said that its soldiers targeted Pakistani posts after they were fired upon. The Indian troops did not suffer any casualties, officials said.

The confrontation happened hours after the wife and mother of an imprisoned Indian naval officer who faces the death penalty in Pakistan for espionage and sabotage were allowed to meet with him in Islamabad.

After Saturday’s shooting, the Indian military had said in a statement that the soldiers’ killings “will not go in vain.” India said Pakistani soldiers had violated the 2003 cease-fire accord by targeting Indian forward posts in the Rajouri sector.

On Tuesday, Pakistan summoned an Indian diplomat and lodged a protest over the killing of Pakistani soldiers.

The Pakistani army initially said the three soldiers were killed by Indian fire, but the Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad Faisal later said the Indian fire provided cover for “non-state actors” to plant explosive devices, which killed the soldiers.

“The Indian actions got a befitting response from the Pakistani side and their guns were silenced,” he said in a statement.

India and Pakistan have a long history of bitter relations over the Himalayan territory, which both claim in its entirety. Both countries have repeatedly accused the other of initiating border skirmishes that led to the deaths of soldiers and civilians.