The Foreign Office (FO) on Wednesday summoned Indian Deputy High Commissioner Gaurav Ahluwalia to lodge a protest against ceasefire violations along the Line of Control (LoC), which have resulted in several casualties.
One elderly man was killed while five other civilians, including two women and three boys, were injured in Azad Jammu and Kashmir due to heavy shelling by Indian troops across the LoC on Monday.
Yesterday, three soldiers were martyred due to unprovoked firing in the Rakhchikri sector in Rawalkot. On the same day, an 18-year-old man was killed while three women were injured in unrelenting ceasefire violations by the Indian forces.
The FO pointed out that the Indian forces had also “intentionally” targeted a bus carrying civilians in the Bagsar Sector, which was “not only in clear violation of existing arrangement but also unethical and immoral”.
The Foreign Office warned that ceasefire violations by the Indian forces were “deplorable and contrary to human dignity, international human rights and humanitarian laws” and posed a threat to regional peace and stability.
It also cautioned that unprovoked firing and shelling “may lead to a strategic miscalculation”.
The FO urged the Indian side to respect the 2003 ceasefire agreement. It also asked its Indian counterparts to investigate this as well as other incidents of ceasefire violations and to instruct Indian forces to respect the ceasefire “in letter and spirit and maintain peace on the LoC and the Working Boundary”.
The FO also asked the Indian side to allow the United Nations Military Observers Mission for India and Pakistan to play its mandated role as per United Nations Security Council resolutions.
