Days after Pahalgam attack, Pakistan troops open ‘unprovoked fire’ across LoC, Indian Army ‘effectively responds’

Amid heightened India-Pakistan tensions in the wake of the attack on tourists in Pahalgam, Pakistani troops on Thursday night resorted to unprovoked firing at various place along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir, security sources said.

“Small arm firing was initiated by Pakistan at some places on LoC,” a senior Army official said. The official said that the Indian side ”effectively responded” to the Pakistani firing.

No casualties have been reported. Further details are awaited.

The firing comes just a couple of weeks after a Brigade Commander flag meeting — the second during the current year — took place along the LoC in Poonch on April 10.

According to sources, the Indian Army had flagged its protest over recent infiltration attempts, ceasefire violations and IED explosions along the LoC.

Security force personnel patrol at the site of the militant attack in Pahalgam. (Photo: Reuters)

In the first meeting held on February 21 this year, the two sides had reportedly agreed to maintain the sanctity of the LoC and also the ceasefire agreement reached between the two sides on February 25, 2021.

The firing incident also comes just days after terrorists killed 26 people in an attack on tourists in south Kashmir’s Pahalgam. In the following days, there have been two encounters — one in Uri and one in Udhampur — in J&K between militants and security forces. The Udhampur encounter on Thursday morning led to the death of one Army jawan.