The Indian Army on Sunday offered the Pakistani Army to take back the bodies of its personnel who were killed during an alleged infiltration attempt across the Line of Control, PTI reported. The Pakistani military was asked to come with white flags and take possession of the bodies from the Indian side, officials said.
Five to seven intruders were killed when the Indian Army foiled an operation by Pakistan’s Border Action Team in Keran sector along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir on the intervening night of July 31 and August 1. They are believed to be militants or Pakistan Army personnel. India used Bofors 155mm artillery guns to retaliate, the Indian Express reported.
At least four bodies, said to be of the Pakistan Army’s Special Service Group commandos or militants, were seen close to an Indian post in the sector, officials told PTI.
“In the last 36 hours a number of attempts to disrupt the peace and to target the Amarnath Yatra were made in Kashmir,” the Army’s spokesperson Rajesh Kalia said, according to Greater Kashmir. “A BAT attempt was made on one of the forward posts in Keran sector. It was foiled by alert troops resulting in the killing of five to seven regulars/militants.”
Kalia added that four Jaish-e-Mohammad militants were also killed in various encounters on Friday and Saturday. “The recovery of cache of arms, sniper rifle, IED and a mine with Pakistani markings clearly indicates complicity of Pakistan in militant activities,” Kalia said. “Security forces will continue to respond to all nefarious activities along the LoC [Line of Control] and the hinterland.”
India denied Pakistan’s allegation that it had used cluster bombs to target civilians across the Line of Control, The Times of India reported. “In the latest provocation, cluster ammunition has been used by the Indian Army against civilians in Azad Jammu and Kashmir, resulting in the martyrdom of two civilians including a 4-year child and critical injuries to 11 civilians,” Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs had claimed on Saturday. Pakistan had also claimed that Indian firing killed six civilians, wounded 48 and damaged infrastructure in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir between July 19 and August 3.
The Indian Army, however, alleged that Pakistan was “desperately trying to push terrorists from Jaish-e-Mohammad and other tanzims” across the Line of Control for the last 48 hours. An Indian Army officer said 200 to 250 terrorists were waiting in launchpads across the Line of Control to infiltrate into India under covering fire by the Pakistan Army.
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