Army soldier killed in Pak firing in Kashmir

An army soldier was killed in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch district Friday after an Indian post along the Line of Control (LoC) came under heavy fire from Pakistani troops from across the border, an army source here said.

"An Indian post, Khalsa 2, along the LoC in the Saujian sector (about 260 km north-west of Jammu) came under fire from Pakistani troops at 1.35 p.m. today (Friday). The firing, in which heavy machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades were used, lasted for about an hour during which an Indian Army soldier was killed," the source said.

The killed soldier has been identified as Lance Naik Bachan Singh. The Indian troops, too, opened fire on Pakistani troops in retaliation, the source added.

Earlier on May 24, a Brigadier was injured when an Indian post in the Nowgam sector of Kupwara district in Kashmir Valley came under fire from Pakistani troops in violation of the ceasefire agreement between India and Pakistan.

Over two dozen ceasefire violations by Pakistan have taken place this year. In 2012, the number of ceasefire violations were 117 against 61 in 2011. The firing by Pakistan across the LoC mainly takes place to provide cover to infiltrating militants.

India and Pakistan had agreed to ceasefire along their frontiers in November 2003.