LoC tensions flare as Pak targets Indian posts for 3rd straight day

The Pakistan Army opened fire at several Indian posts along the Line of Control (LoC) for the third straight day on Sunday, with the sustained aggressive moves bruising the February 2021 ceasefire agreement and signalling its intent to further escalate hostilities along the volatile frontier after the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people, officials aware of the matter said.

Forward deployed Indian troops responded firmly to the latest night-long provocation and targeted the adversary’s posts facing the Tutmari Gali and Rampur sectors in north Kashmir, which has been at the centre of the current border tensions, HT learns.

“The violations are likely to intensify and expand along the LoC. The ceasefire is crumbling,” said one of the officials cited above.

Also Read | Pahalgam culprits will get harshest punishment: PM

The latest flare up on the LoC is set in the context of India announcing a raft of retaliatory measures against Pakistan after the Pahalgam attack as well as considering military options to target the neighbouring country for its support to terror that is bleeding Jammu & Kashmir.

In Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the perpetrators and conspirators of the attack will be served the harshest response, a stern warning to Pakistan.

“The unity of the country, the solidarity of 140 crore Indians is our biggest strength in the war against terror,” he said in Mann ki Baat, his monthly radio address.

Also Read | MHA hands over Pahalgam terror attack probe to NIA

The repeated targeting of Indian posts across north Kashmir has sparked the most extensive cross-border exchange in four years.

Hostilities along the LoC have hit a four-year high as the 2021 ceasefire had mostly held until the Pahalgam attack. Unlike isolated, brief exchanges that were quickly resolved through established channels, the current pattern involves simultaneous salvos at multiple points across most of the 740-km frontier and has persisted with increasing frequency after the Pahalgam terror attack.

The ceasefire cannot be insulated from the overall trajectory of India-Pakistan relations, said Lieutenant General DS Hooda (retd), a former Northern Army commander.

“With both sides preparing for military action, tensions are bound to rise on the LoC. This increases the fragility of the 2021 ceasefire understanding, something that we are already witnessing,” he said.

On Friday night, Indian soldiers responded firmly to ceasefire violations in sectors including Uri, Tangdhar, Kupwara and Gurez, with officials saying they are fully prepared to handle the adversary’s aggression and provocations. Pakistani soldiers violated the ceasefire in north Kashmir on Thursday night too, a day before army chief General Upendra Dwivedi visited Srinagar and reviewed the security dynamics in J&K.

India has already suspended the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, downgraded bilateral ties, and shut down the only operational land border crossing at Attari. Pakistan has unveiled tit-for-tat reactions to punitive measures announced by India but neither side has thus far indicated its intent to abandon the ceasefire.

Pakistan has closed its airspace to Indian airlines, suspended all trade with India, including through third-party countries, and has threatened to suspend bilateral pacts such as the Simla Agreement.

The use of heavier weapons and artillery along the LoC cannot be ruled out, said another official.

On Thursday, the Pakistan Army opened small arms fire at several locations on its side of the LoC, suspecting Indian soldiers may have crossed over to conduct operations. The speculative firing was carried out as local Pakistani commanders sought to provoke a response that could confirm the presence of rival soldiers.

The two armies announced on February 25, 2021, that they had begun observing a ceasefire along the LoC from midnight of February 24. They had earlier agreed to a ceasefire in November 2003, but it was frequently violated. The ceasefire violations by the neighbouring army have traditionally been aimed at providing cover to infiltrators.

Pakistan resorted to the highest ever ceasefire violations in the year preceding the joint announcement in February 2021 --- its army violated it at least a dozen times on average daily between February 2020 and February 2021.