PHOTO: AFP
ISLAMABAD: Amid unabated ceasefire violations by Indian troops, Pakistan Army on Saturday warned Indian military that continued provocations along the Line of Control (LoC) and Working Boundary could “invoke an unbearable response”.
The warning was conveyed by Director General Military Operations (DGMO) Major General Sahir Shamshad Mirza to his Indian counterpart Lieutenant General AK Bhatt during an “unscheduled hot-line contact”.
The Indian army was told that targeting of civilians was “highly unprofessional and unethical”, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a statement on Saturday.
Pakistan Army has recorded 1,300 ceasefire violations by Indian troops along the LoC and Working Boundary already this year. According to the Foreign Office figures, 52 civilians have been killed and over 170 others injured in shelling and firing by Indian troops.
The “unscheduled hot-line contact" came a day after army chief General Qamar Bajwa said Pakistan Army was always ready to respond to any threats across the country’s eastern border with India.
Ready to respond to threats on eastern border: COAS
“There cannot be any let up for our preparedness for response against perpetual threat on our eastern border including LoC and Line of Actual Contact (LAC),” he was quoted as saying during his visit to the Corps Headquarters Rawalpindi.
The army chief’s visit coincided with unprovoked firing by Indian forces in Chirikot and Nezapir sectors, in which two civilians were martyred and five others, including two women, injured.
Subsequently, the Indian deputy high commissioner, JP Singh, was summoned to the Foreign Office by Director General South Asia & SAARC Dr Mohammad Faisal to lodge a diplomatic protest.
“The deliberate targeting of civilians is indeed deplorable and contrary to human dignity and international human rights and humanitarian laws,” Dr Faisal was quoted by the Foreign Office as telling the Indian envoy.
“The ceasefire violations by India are a threat to regional peace and security and may lead to a strategic miscalculation.”
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