Two women martyred in Indian firing on Working Boundary

RAWALPINDI: Two women embraced martyrdom while five others, including three women, sustained gunshot wounds when the Indian Border Security Force resorted to unprovoked firing along the Working Boundary in Sialkot, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a statement on Thursday.

The civilians were targeted in Kundan Pur village of Chaprar sector. Punjab Rangers retaliated to neutralise the BSF posts. Police in India said they had evacuated villagers living near the firing, which had killed an Indian soldier and a woman.

Meanwhile, Director General South Asia and Saarc Dr Mohammad Faisal summoned Indian Deputy High Commissioner JP Singh to the Foreign Office on Thursday and condemned the unprovoked ceasefire violations by the Indian occupation forces along the Working Boundary resulting in the Shahadat of two innocent women (45-year-old Parveen Bibi and 20-year-old Ayesha) and injuries to five others, including three females.

He said the Indian forces, along the Working Boundary, had started indiscriminate and unprovoked firing on the civilian populated villages with heavy mortars and automatic weapons on Wednesday night.

Despite calls for restraint, India continues to indulge in ceasefire violations. In 2018, the Indian forces carried out more than 110 ceasefire violations along the Line of Control and the Working Boundary in just 18 days, resulting in the martyrdom of three civilians, and injuries to 10 others.

This unprecedented escalation in ceasefire violations by India is continuing from the year 2017 when the Indian forces committed more than 1,900 ceasefire violations, the Indian envoy was told.

Dr Faisal said deliberate targeting of civilian populated areas was indeed deplorable and contrary to human dignity, international human rights and humanitarian laws.

He said ceasefire violations by India were threat to regional peace and security and may lead to strategic miscalculation.

He urged the Indian side to respect the 2003 ceasefire arrangement, investigate this and other incidents of ceasefire violations, instruct the Indian forces to respect the ceasefire agreement and maintain peace on the LoC and the Working Boundary.