Four civilians killed and thousands flee their homes as tensions spill over into violence in divided Himalayan region

This article is more than 5 years old

This article is more than 5 years old

Indian and Pakistani troops traded gunfire over their border in the divided Himalayan region of Kashmir, killing at least four civilians and worsening tensions between the longtime rivals, officials on both sides have said.

The small-arms and mortar exchanges – which Indian officials called the worst violation of a 2003 ceasefire – also left 18 civilians wounded in India and another three in Pakistan.

“We have a very serious situation at hand right now,” said Shantmanu, an Indian administrator in the area. He said there was panic among people living close to the border.

Tens of thousands of people have fled their homes on both sides since the violence erupted on Sunday night. In total, nine civilians in Pakistan and seven in India have been killed in the last three nights of fighting, officials said.

“We fail to understand why the Indians are targeting Pakistani civilian populations,” said Maj Gen Khan Javed Khan of the Pakistani paramilitary border force. Indian officials have similarly accused the Pakistanis of focusing on civilian settlements.

Since Sunday, the violence has spread to more points along the 125-mile (200km) border between Pakistan’s Punjab province and the Indian-controlled portion of Kashmir. That lower-altitude border, guarded by paramilitary border forces, is lined on both sides by ancient villages and agricultural fields.

Pakistan also controls a part of Kashmir farther north, marked by a UN-monitored line of control where there were also exchanges of fire overnight.

With the skirmishes spreading, Indian authorities moved a further 5,000 people to government shelters on Tuesday night in the worst-hit Samba sector, according to Indian police officer K Rajendra. Khan said 12,000 Pakistan villagers had been evacuated since Monday.

“It’s the most serious violation of the 2003 ceasefire,” Rajendra said, referring to the agreement brokered between India and Pakistan after several years of almost-daily border battles. India and Pakistan have fought two wars over Kashmir since they won independence from Britain in 1947.

Still, some Indian officials downplayed the seriousness of the latest flare-up. “I don’t know whether this can be called a war-like situation. The firing is going on, and we are giving a strong reply,” said DK Pathak, director general of India’s border security force.

UN military observers in India and Pakistan plan to visit the area, the Pakistani military said on Tuesday after lodging a protest with the group alleging that Indian troops had fired first.

“We call upon the Indian government to immediately cease fire and shelling and help us preserve tranquillity,” said Sartaj Aziz, the national security adviser to the Pakistan prime minister, Nawaz Sharif.

India has accused Pakistan of starting this week’s skirmishes, saying it wants to create a distraction to help separatist militants infiltrate Indian-controlled Kashmir. Pakistan has repeatedly denied this.

Several insurgent groups have been fighting since 1989 for Kashmir’s independence from India or its merger with Pakistan.