Indian Army retaliates, kills seven Pakistani soldiers

The Indian Army on Monday carried out a “retaliatory action” against Pakistani troops, killing seven of their soldiers and injuring four others along the LoC in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch district.

The action comes after an Indian solider was killed in Pakistani firing along the LoC in Jammu and Kashmir’s Rajouri district on Saturday. “Army has carried out retaliation against Pakistani troops across Jaglote area along the LoC in Mendhar sector of Poonch district. “In the retaliatory action, there were seven fatal causalities to Pakistani troops and four others injured,” a senior Army officer said.

Pakistan Army today said it lost four of its soldiers in a cross-border firing by India across the Line of Control (LoC) and claimed to have killed three Indian troops. They were fired upon and hit by heavy mortar rounds while carrying out “line communication maintenance” along the LoC in Kotli sector’s Jandrot area, the army’s media wing said in a statement. Pakistan summoned Indian Deputy High Commissioner J P Singh to protest the deaths of its soldiers. The Foreign Office (FO) said in a statement that India violated the ceasefire agreement in Jandrot sub-sector of Kotli sector, “resulting in the martyrdom of four Pakistani soldiers, while injuring five others”.

Army chief Gen Bipin Rawat said today his force will not let anti-India activities succeed at any cost in Jammu and Kashmir and warned of stronger reaction against Pakistan-supported terrorism. Addressing Armymen on the occasion of Army Day, Gen Rawat also said that disputes along the Line of Actual Control in northern border (China) were continuing and transgressions were taking place and the Army is working to stop them. “Pakistan Army has been continuously trying to help terrorists sneak into India along LoC (Line of Control) in J&K. We are using our might to teach them a lesson,” he said. “If we are forced, then we may resort to ‘other action’ by stepping up military offensive,” he added.