ISLAMABAD: Pakistan summoned a senior Indian diplomat and lodged with him a strong protest over the ceasefire violations on Tuesday which resulted in serious injuries to four innocent civilians including three women along the Line of Control (LoC), the Foreign Office said.

Due to the indiscriminate and unprovoked firing by the Indian occupation forces in Hotspring and Jandrot Sectors of the LoC on 2nd February 2021, a 30-year-old Zubina Bukhari, wife of Faizan Shah, resident of Tahi Mohra village; 17-year-old Rida Tahir, daughter of Bahsarat Shah, resident of Tahi Mohra village; 16-year-old Ameen Ali, son of Basharat Shah, resident of Tahi Mohra village; and 42-year-old Saleema Begum, wife of Muhammad Yaqoob, resident of Batali village, sustained serious injuries.

The Indian occupation forces along the LoC and the Working Boundary (WB) have been continuously targeting civilian-populated areas with artillery fire, heavy-caliber mortars, and automatic weapons, the Foreign Office said in a statement.

In 2021, the Indian occupation forces have carried out 175 ceasefire violations to date, resulting in serious injuries to eight innocent civilians, it noted.

Condemning the deplorable targeting of innocent civilians by the Indian occupation forces, it was underscored that such senseless acts are in clear violation of the 2003 Ceasefire Understanding, and are also against all established humanitarian norms and professional military conduct.

“These egregious violations of international law reflect consistent Indian attempts to escalate the situation along the LoC and are a threat to regional peace and security. It was added that by raising tensions along the LoC and the WB, India cannot divert attention from the grave human rights situation in the Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK),” it stated

The Indian side was called upon to respect the 2003 Ceasefire Understanding, investigate this and other such incidents of deliberate ceasefire violations and maintain peace along the LoC and the WB.

The Indian side was also urged to allow the United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP) to play its mandated role as per the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions, it added.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021