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India says skirmishes with Pakistan on Kashmir border kills 1, wounds 6

Xinhua, August 28, 2015 Adjust font size:

At least one civilian was killed and six others wounded Friday in ongoing skirmishes between troops of India and Pakistan on the International Border (IB) in Kashmir, officials said.

The two sides fired mortars and resorted to heavy firing in R S Pora sector about 45 km southwest of Jammu city, the winter capital of Indian-controlled Kashmir.

"One civilian was killed and six others wounded after Pakistani troops started unprovoked firing and shelling on Indian positions at around 2:00 a.m. (local time), " an official said.

According to India's official broadcaster -- All India Radio ( AIR), Indian border guards of Border Security Force (BSF) retaliated to Pakistani firing and the intermittent exchange was going on until last reports came in.

Meanwhile, Pakistani TV channels quoted local officials and residents as saying that Indian forces opened "unprovoked fire," which resulted in the deaths of at least three Pakistani civilians and injuries of several others.

Several causalities were reported on both sides in this month in similar exchanges between troops of the two countries.

On Tuesday an Indian military officer was killed in firing from Pakistan side on Line of Control (LoC) -- dividing Kashmir -- in Nowgam sector of frontier Kupwara district.

Security level talks between India and Pakistan were canceled on Sunday hours before the proposed schedule over the issue of Kashmir.

The two sides were supposed to discuss cease-fire violations on LoC and border during the high-level meeting.

Both New Delhi and Islamabad accuse each other of resorting to unprovoked firings and violating cease-fire agreements. And both sides maintain that their troops gave befitting reply to the other side.

The troops of India and Pakistan intermittently exchange fire on the LoC and the IB in Kashmir, despite an agreement in 2003 to observe a cease-fire. Though some violations have been reported on both sides, the cease-fire however remains in effect.

Kashmir, the Himalayan region divided between India and Pakistan, is claimed by both in full. Since their independence from Britain, the two countries have fought three wars, two exclusively over Kashmir. Endi