DGMO warns India of befitting response   

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Army has warned of stronger and effective measures in case of any deliberate attempt to target the Pakistani side of the Line of Control (LoC) by the Indian troops.

The warning came from Pakistan DGMO Major General Sahir Shamshad Mirza during his weekly hotline contact with his Indian counterpart on Monday. The Director General notified Pakistan’s demarche to his Indian counterpart to protest deliberate targeting of Pakistan Army’s vehicle resulting in martyrdom of four soldiers and injuring one soldier and a civilian passerby.

He emphasised the importance of controlling tactical actions of under command troops since these indiscretions could potentially spiral into major standoffs. He said such acts had the potential to escalate which would be extremely detrimental to peace and stability.

Meanwhile, India has defended shelling across the LoC that killed four Pakistani soldiers, saying on Monday it had the right to retaliate against "ceasefire violations" in the Kashmir region.

In a statement, the Indian Army claimed that "all ceasefire violations were initiated by Pakistan Army and the Indian Army only responded appropriately to them".

India was also targeting "armed intruders" attempting to cross the Line of Control -- the de facto Kashmir border -- in close proximity to Pakistani army posts, the statement added.  The Indian Army said it wanted peace at the border but "reserved the right to retaliate appropriately" against ceasefire violations.

On Monday, a nine-year-old girl and a soldier were killed in Indian-administered Kashmir after Pakistani troops fired along the border in Poonch district, the Press Trust of India reported.

Three people including a woman were injured when Indian forces yet again resorted to unprovoked firing and shelling in various areas of Nakyal Sector along the Line of Control from across the border.

According to sources of a private TV channel, the unprovoked firing and shelling by Indian forces in Tarkandi area of Nakyal Sector also completely destroyed three houses. The Pak Army gave a speedy and befitting reply to the Indian aggression. In the meantime, the vehicle of Pakistan Army which was attacked by Indian forces on Sunday and fell down into the Neelum River was pulled from the river on Monday.

During the operation, the divers of Pak Army pulled the vehicle while a search operation for dead bodies was underway. A temporary ban has been imposed on new tourists in Neelum Valley but those already present there may continue their activities.

The recent firing incident by Indian troops has made the atmosphere gloomy as guest houses become vacant after the firing incident.  Neelum Deputy Commissioner Chaudhry Muhammad Farid and Superintendent of Police Jammel Ahmed Jamil said that such cowardice acts of Indian army could not deter the spirit of Kashmiri people. They said law and order situation was under control in Neelum. He asked the masses not to pay heed to the rumours.

They said entry of the tourists in the valley had been halted temporarily due to possible threats. They said free rent service would be provided to tourists for a week. They said people of Neelum Valley should continue their routine activities. They said traffic was being run without any hindrance.