13 dead, 59 injured, as Pakistan shells villages along LoC, army retaliates

At least 12 civilians and a soldier were killed and another 59 people injured in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch district as the Pakistan army resorted to intense artillery shelling along the Line of Control (LoC) early on Wednesday, triggering panic among local residents and distress evacuations from border villages and hamlets.

Among the 59 injured, 44 were in Poonch, the external affairs ministry confirmed.

The shelling came hours after Indian forces carried out precision strikes on nine terror targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, in retaliation for the Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people two weeks ago .

A senior police officer in Poonch confirmed the civilian casualties and said the dead included four children aged between seven and 14 years, two of whom were siblings. Poonch chief medical officer Dr Parvaiz Khan, confirmed the 12 deaths and 42 injuries.

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Nagrota-based White Knight Corps said Lance Naik Dinesh Kumar of 5 Field Regiment Royal Artillery was also killed in the shelling. “GOC and all ranks of White Knight Corps salute the supreme sacrifice of L/Nk Dinesh Kumar of 5 Fd Regt, who laid down his life on 07 May 25 during Pakistan Army shelling,” it posted on X.

The deceased civilians include Balvinder Kour or Ruby of Mankote, Mohammed Zain or Ayan of Poonch, his sister Zoya Khan of Mandi, Mohammed Akram of Sukka Katha, Amreek Singh, Ranjeet Singh and Amarjeet Singh of Sandigate, Mohammedd Rafi of Bandichechian, Mohammedd Iqbal of Baila, Shakeela Bi of Bhainch Dalera, Maryam Khatoon of Qazi Mohra and Vihaan Bhargav of Dungus, he said.

“Out of the 42 injured, four have been referred to GMC Jammu for specialised treatment. They are stable,” said Dr Khan.

A senior police officer, who asked not to be named, said, “Twelve civilians, including four minors aged seven, 12, 13 and 14 were killed in the Pakistani shelling.”

Four members of the Sikh community, including a woman, also died. A Muslim cleric of the Darul Uloom Madrasa, Quari Mohammad Iqbal, was killed in the shelling, added the official.

The Indian army was responding in an effective and appropriate manner.

The indiscriminate shelling created panic among the border residents who were forced to take refuge in underground bunkers or shift to safer places within or outside their villages. The shelling was reported from Balakot, Mendhar, Mankote, Sagra, Krishna Ghati, Gulpur, Kerni and even Poonch district headquarters, resulting in damage to dozens of houses.

Chief minister Omar Abdullah castigated the shelling.

“Pakistan has gone out of its way to target the civilian populations. I had a video conference with all the district collectors along the border and Line of Control and have taken stock of the situation and we are dealing with the situation as it develops,” he said.”We can only hope that all of this ends soon. If the guns from the other side stop, the guns here will also stop. Currently, our civilian areas are their primary targets.”

“Villagers are migrating to their relatives’ houses in Jammu,” said Darshan Bharti, a resident of Poonch city. He said that he was evacuating his family to Jammu. “But there is panic among the people. There are large queues of people at fuel stations,” he said.

Lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha took stock of the situation in the border districts with all the senior administrative, police and district officials, including deputy commissioners (DCs) of all the border districts, earlier this morning.

“I’m closely monitoring the situation and the government is fully prepared to deal with any eventuality. I’ve also directed the DCs for shifting of villagers from vulnerable areas to safer locations and ensuring boarding, lodging, food, medicare and transportation. We will ensure the safety of every citizen. Jai Hind!” the L-G posted on X.

In north Kashmir, panic spread after Pakistani shells began raining on villages in Uri, Kupwara and Tangdhar shortly after midnight. At least a dozen houses were damaged and five people, including a three-year-old boy, were injured in the shelling from across the LoC.

The villagers close to bunkers took refuge in underground shelters, and a majority of people stayed in their mud and brick houses. Five persons were injured and four houses damaged when shells landed on Salamabad village, close to the LoC. “There is panic in our village. From midnight, nobody could sleep due to heavy shelling. It’s reminiscent of the past years when similar artillery shells landed in our villages,” said Mohammad Aslam of Salamabad. “The injured persons have been shifted to sub district hospital Uri,” he added.

Pakistani shells also landed in Gingal, Salamabad and Kamalkote in Uri, and Batapora in Tangdhar. “We have taken refuge in underground bunkers after shells started falling in the neighboring village Batapora. There is fear everywhere as the situation is very bad; some houses caught fire due to the shelling,” said Mohammad Shafiq from Kandi Tanghdar.

The heavy shelling triggered a panicked evacuation from Chowkibal village, which is in Kupwara. A senior health officer said they received three injuries in the sub-district hospital Uri. “We are anticipating more injuries as shelling has been going since midnight,” he said.

The army confirmed the shelling. “During the night of 06-07 May 2025, Pakistan Army resorted to arbitrary firing including artillery shelling from posts across the Line of Control and international border opposite J&K.” the army said in a statement.

“Pakistan again violates the Ceasefire Agreement by firing artillery in Bhimber Gali in Poonch- Rajouri area. Indian Army is responding appropriately in a calibrated manner,” the additional directorate general of public information (ADGPI) of the Indian Army wrote on X at 2.42am.

The shelling began hours after India carried out precision strikes on “terrorist infrastructure” at nine sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).

In the Aklian Kalan village of Bathinda district in Punjab, one person was killed and nine others injured after an unidentified aircraft crashed and went up in flames, Dr Dheera Gupta, senior medical officer at the government hospital in Goniana,

Since the April 22 terror attack at Pahalgam, the worst strike on civilians in nearly two decades, Pakistan has repeatedly flouted the ceasefire along the LoC and the international border for 12 consecutive days. But Wednesday morning saw the first instance of heavy shelling along the de-facto border in these two weeks. Anti-aircraft firing was heard in the Valley with sirens blaring at the 15 Corps headquarters in Srinagar, said people aware of developments.

Pakistani troops violated the February 2021 ceasefire agreement around 15 times between January and early April 2025. But the repeated targeting of Indian posts along the LoC, and the IB last week, has sparked the most extensive cross-border exchange since the 2021 ceasefire.

On Tuesday too, the Pakistan Army had escalated tensions along the LoC by firing at Indian posts in several sectors including Kupwara, Baramulla, Poonch, Rajouri, Mendhar, Naushera, Sunderbani and Akhnoor, marking the 12 straight day of ceasefire violations. The Indian Army’s counter -fire was measured but effective.

The neighbouring army had opened fire in these eight sectors on Sunday and Monday too, the maximum number of areas it targeted on a single day after the Pahalgam terror attack.

The extensive ceasefire violations were seen as a deliberate attempt by Pakistan to escalate tensions along the de facto border where it has rushed reinforcements to bolster its posture. The repeated targeting of Indian posts has sparked the most extensive cross-border exchange since the 2021 ceasefire.

Unlike isolated, brief exchanges that were quickly resolved through established channels, the current pattern involves simultaneous salvos at multiple points and has persisted with increasing frequency after the Pahalgam terror attack.