Pakistani soldier killed in fresh Kashmir firing: military

Recent exchanges of fire across the de facto border between India and Pakistan in Kashmir, which both countries administer in part but claim in full, have killed at least 20 civilians and forced thousands to flee their homes.

A military statement said “Indian troops resorted to unprovoked firing” at the Line of Control in the Pandu sector near Muzaffarabad on Thursday evening.

“A Pakistan Army soldier embraced shahadat (martyrdom). Pakistani troops befittingly responded to Indian firing,” it added.

The nuclear-armed neighbour, who have fought two wars over Muslim-majority Kashmir, have traded blame for the upsurge in firing and shelling which started on October 6.

India called off peace talks in August after Pakistan first consulted Kashmiri separatists, a move some saw as a sign of a tougher stance by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s new right-wing government.