India: Malfunction led to accidental firing of missile into Pakistan

The incident is "deeply regrettable", India said, adding that it is "a matter of relief that there has been no loss of life due to the accident".

There have been numerous flare-ups in the heavily militarised border between India and Pakistan.
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There have been numerous flare-ups in the heavily militarised border between India and Pakistan.

India's military accidentally fired a missile into neighbouring Pakistan, New Delhi's Defence Ministry has said, calling it "deeply regrettable".

"In the course of a routine maintenance, a technical malfunction led to the accidental firing of a missile" on Wednesday, India's Defence Ministry said.

Friday's statement did not specify the type of missile, but said it landed "in an area of Pakistan".

The incident was "deeply regrettable", it said, adding that it was "a matter of relief that there has been no loss of life due to the accident".

The statement came hours after Islamabad's Foreign Ministry condemned what it called an "unprovoked violation of its airspace by an Indian origin 'super-sonic flying object'".

READ MORE: India's 'supersonic missile' damages wall in Pakistan's Punjab

'Imprudent launch'

India's charge d'affaires in Islamabad had been summoned to the foreign office for a "strong protest", it added.

The "imprudent launch" had damaged property on the ground and put at risk both civilian lives and aircraft in Pakistani airspace, it said.

It accused India of "callousness towards regional peace and stability".

Hindu-majority India and Muslim Pakistan have fought three wars since independence from British colonial rule in 1947, two of them over the disputed territory of Kashmir.

Their shared border has a heavy military presence on both sides, and there have been numerous flare-ups between them, with tensions sometimes raising fears of an atomic exchange.

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