Shelling across Pakistan-India de facto border in Kashmir kills three

Shelling across the de facto border between India and Pakistan killed three Kashmiri civilians and wounded two on Pakistani side of Kashmir, military officials from the two sides said on Sunday.

Indian and Pakistani troops exchanged mortar and artillery shelling along the de facto border known as the Line of Control (LoC) that divides the disputed Kashmir region. 

The sporadic exchanges began on Saturday and continued into Sunday.

Both countries claim the region in full, but rule only parts, and often accuse each other of breaching a 2003 ceasefire pact by shelling and firing across the LoC.

Pakistani troops targeted civilians living near the LoC, killing three people, including a child and a woman, and wounding five, Vijay Kumar, police chief of Kashmir, told Reuters news agency.

Pakistan blames Indian troops for ceasefire violations and targeting civilians in Kashmir.

Two Pakistani civilians were injured due to shelling from India, Major-General Babar Iftikhar of the public relations wing of the Pakistan Army, said in a Tweet.

Fresh tensions

Tension between the two countries was renewed when New Delhi withdrew the limited autonomy of the Kashmir region in 2019 and split it into territories federally administered by India.

Until then, it had had autonomy over all matters except defence, communications and foreign affairs.

India accuses its neighbour of training and then sending rebels across the border to launch attacks and support a separatist movement against Indian rule.

Pakistan denies giving material support to rebels in Kashmir but says it provides moral and diplomatic backing for the UN-brokered self-determination of Kashmiri people. 

Armed revolt

India has deployed more than 500,000 troops in India-administered Kashmir where it is fighting an asymmetric warfare against more than a dozen rebel outfits who want to merge the disputed territory with Pakistan or stay independent. 

Between 70,000 to 100,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed in the armed revolt against India's rule there.