Pakistan summons Indian envoy over death of 2 civilians in cross-border firing

Source: Xinhua| 2017-07-08 19:41:08|Editor: Zhang Dongmiao
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ISLAMABAD, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Pakistan summoned an Indian envoy on Saturday to lodge protest over cross-border shelling which killed at least two civilians, officials said.

The Pakistan army said earlier that at least two civilians were killed in Indian firing along the Line of Control (LoC) dividing Kashmir.

Director General of the South Asian Desk at the Foreign Ministry Mohammad Faisal summoned the Indian Deputy High Commissioner J.P. Singh and condemned the unprovoked ceasefire violations by the Indian forces in Chirikot and Satwal Sectors on Saturday, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The statement said the Indian firing resulted in the killing of 2 civilians, a 22-year-old women in Satwal village and a man in Tetri Note village, while three others were injured.

"The deliberate targeting of civilians is indeed deplorable and contrary to human dignity and international human rights and humanitarian laws," the Pakistani official told the Indian envoy.

Pakistan and India had declared ceasefire along the LoC in 2003, however, both routinely accuse each other of its violation.

"The director general urged the Indian side to respect the 2003 Ceasefire arrangement, investigate this and other incidents of ceasefire violations, and instruct the Indian forces to respect the ceasefire, in letter and spirit and maintain peace on the LoC," the statement said.

Faisal said the Indian side should permit UN Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP) to play its mandated role as per the UN Security Council resolutions.

Escalation has been seen along the LoC since a militant attack on an army center in the Indian-controlled Kashmir which killed 19 soldiers on Sept. 18 last year.

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