Border Guard Killed in Exchange of Fire in Indian Kashmir

An Indian border guard was killed and another wounded in an exchange of fire with Pakistan forces Wednesday along their border in Kashmir, officials said.

Pakistani Rangers opened fire in the Samba sector, 350 kilometers (217 miles) from the region's main city of Srinagar, and the Indian guards retaliated, said  Border Security Force (BSF) Inspector General D. Parikh.

"One soldier was killed and another critically wounded in the firing from across the border," Parikh told AFP.

The paramilitary force patrols the internationally recognized border in Kashmir, south of the disputed frontier in the region.

Parikh said the Pakistani side had informed them that two of their own soldiers were also killed in the exchange of fire.

India and Pakistan, who have fought two of their three wars over Kashmir, often accuse each other of violating a 2003 ceasefire agreement.

In October they clashed with heavy weapons in the same area and a total of 20 civilians from both sides, including women, were killed. 

Earlier in December a group of six heavily armed militants stormed an Indian army base in Uri near the disputed border known as the Line of Control, and killed 11 soldiers and police. 

The six attackers were also killed.