Cross-Border Fire from India Kills Four Civilians

Tauseef Mustafa—AFP

Pakistani officials say another six people were injured in incident on Monday.

Pakistan accused India on Monday of killing four civilians and wounding six others in cross-border fire, amid heightened tensions between the neighboring nations.

The incident occurred near the border dividing India-administered Kashmir from Pakistan’s Punjab province, Pakistani officials said. “At least four people including a woman were killed and six others were injured when Indian troops opened fire across the border in Nakyal sector,” said local official Zeeshan Nisar.

Nakyal lies on the Line of Control, the de facto border between India and Pakistan in the disputed Himalayan state.

Nisar said the cross-border firing started at 8:00 a.m. and continued through Monday with no break. Adnan Khursheed, another local official, confirmed the firing and casualties.

Relations between the two countries have plummeted in recent months, with New Delhi blaming Pakistani militants for a raid on an army base in India-administered Kashmir in September that killed 19 soldiers. India said it responded by carrying out strikes across the heavily militarized border, although Islamabad denies these took place.

Tensions were already high before the army base attack over the July 8 death of a popular militant leader, with nearly 90 people killed in clashes with security forces in India-administered Kashmir since then. Last week New Delhi said it was expelling a Pakistani visa official for suspected spying, with Islamabad responding by sending back an Indian diplomat in an apparent tit-for-tat move.