ISLAMABAD: Pakistan summoned a senior Indian diplomat to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Monday to register a strong protest over the ceasefire violations by the Indian occupation forces along the Line of Control (LoC), resulting in serious injuries to five innocent civilians, including three children.

Foreign Office said that due to the indiscriminate and unprovoked firing by the Indian occupation forces in Nikial Sector of the LoC, on 5th July 2020, a 10 year old Junaid, 7 year old Aryan, 70 year old Jahan Begum, 50 year old Zubaida Bibi and a 15 year old Kamran Shafique sustained serious injuries. All the injured are residents of Truthi and Ghim Bala village.

It stated that 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. This year, India has committed 1595 ceasefire violations to date, resulting in 14 shahadats and serious injuries to 121 innocent civilians, it added.

Condemning the deplorable targeting of innocent civilians by the Indian occupation forces, it added that the Indian diplomat was told 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 stated, adding that it was also conveyed that by raising tensions along the LoC and the WB, India cannot divert attention from the grave human rights situation in the Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IOJ&K).

It added that 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, 2020