Pakistan evacuates Chinese nationals after LoC skirmishes

Decision was taken after a civilian was martyred in unprovoked firing by Indian forces

MUZAFFARABAD: Pakistani officials evacuated more than 50 Chinese nationals working near the Kashmir frontier, authorities said Wednesday, after unprovoked firing by Indian forces along the Line of Control (LoC) martyred one civilian.



The Chinese were working on a dam being constructed in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) along the confluence of the Neelam and Jhelum rivers when firing along the LoC pushed authorities to move the workers late Tuesday, according to Akhtar Ayub from the local disaster management authority.

Another local official Raja Shahid Mahmood said the decision was made after Indian security forces fired a volley of indiscriminate fire that martyred a civilian.

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Pakistan’s Foreign Office on Wednesday also summoned Indian Acting Deputy High Commissioner Gaurav Ahluwalia and protested against Indian firing along the border.

Tensions remain high with arch-rival India after the nuclear-armed neighbours launched tit-for-tat airstrikes in February following a suicide bombing in Indian-occupied Kashmir (IoK).



The latest incident comes after US President Donald Trump triggered a political fiasco in India last week by claiming during a meeting with Prime Minister Imran Khan that Narendra Modi had asked him to mediate in the Kashmir dispute.

India vehemently denied Modi had made any such request, saying the Kashmir issue must be resolved bilaterally between the two countries.