Pak opens fire in 5 border districts, India retaliates

The Pakistan Army, on intervening night of Sunday and Monday, continued firing along the Line of Control (LoC) for the 11th consecutive day in the aftermath of the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack that claimed 26 lives, the Indian Army said.

“During the night of May 4 and 5, Pakistan Army posts resorted to unprovoked small arms fire across the LoC in areas opposite Kupwara, Baramulla, Poonch, Rajouri, Mendhar, Naushera, Sunderbani and Akhnoor in J&K,” said defence spokesperson Lt Col Suneel Bartwal. “The Indian Army responded promptly and proportionately,” he added

The firing was initiated by Pakistani troops across five border districts — Jammu, Rajouri, and Poonch in the south of the Pir Panjal ranges in the Jammu region and Baramulla and Kupwara districts in the Kashmir valley — overnight.

Initially beginning with unprovoked small arms firing at several posts along the LoC in Kupwara and Baramulla districts of north Kashmir, Pakistan swiftly expanded its ceasefire violations to the Poonch sector and subsequently to the Akhnoor sector of the Jammu region.

This was followed by small arms firing at several posts along the LoC in the Sunderbani and Naushera sectors of Rajouri district. Subsequently, the firing expanded to the Pargwal sector along the International Border in Jammu district.

The ceasefire violation by Pakistan occurred despite the fact that the directors general of military operations (DGMOs) of India and Pakistan spoke over the hotline amid Pakistan’s unprovoked firing along the LoC in Jammu and Kashmir on April 29.

It is understood that the Indian side cautioned the Pakistani side about the unprovoked firings during the exchanges.

Since the night of April 24, just hours after India suspended the Indus Waters Treaty following the Pahalgam terror attack, Pakistani troops have been resorting to unprovoked firing at various places along the LoC in J&K, starting from the Kashmir valley.