Indian and Pakistani Troops Trade Border Fire
Indian and Pakistani troops traded cross-border fire Sunday, officials said, the latest in a series of clashes that began earlier this month and have claimed at least 20 civilian lives.
No one was injured in the latest incident, which according to a Pakistani army statement began when Indian troops resorted to "unprovoked" fire across the border that separates Indian-held Kashmir and Pakistan's Punjab province.
Each country holds part of the Himalayan territory but claims it in full. The two nations have fought two full-scale wars over Kashmir, though tensions have eased since the signing of a 2003 ceasefire.
It is still unclear what precipitated the recent upsurge in unrest, which began on October 6 during the Islamic festival of Eid ul-Adha and has forced thousands of residents on both sides to flee their homes.
Pakistan's most senior foreign affairs official Sartaj Aziz meanwhile had a phone conversation with U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, officials said. He told Ban that Islamabad "was fully united and determined to thwart any aggression", according to a statement released by his office.
Aziz also called on the U.N. to implement its 1947 resolution calling for a referendum in Kashmir to determine its fate and restore peace to the region -- a resolution India has long rejected.
Source: Agence France Presse
| Copyright © 2012 Naharnet.com. All Rights Reserved. | https://naharnet.com/stories/en/151767 |