India summons Pak deputy envoy

India on Tuesday issued a demarche to Pakistan protesting against the death of three children due to ceasefire violation by its soldiers across the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir.

Syed Haider Shah, the Deputy High Commissioner of Pakistan in New Delhi, was summoned to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), where senior diplomats served him the demarche.

The diplomats of Pakistan-Afghanistan-India division of the Ministry of External Affairs lodged with him New Delhi’s strong protest over the death of three children due to firing by the soldiers of his country from across the
LoC in Poonch Sector on Monday.

The MEA officials conveyed to the deputy envoy that the soldiers of his country violated the ceasefire without any provocation and thus violated the ceasefire.

Apart from the death of the three children, at least eight civilians were injured due to the violation of ceasefire at Kerni, Kasaba and Digwar villages in Jammu and Kashmir on Monday.

“It was conveyed that such deliberate targeting of civilians was not acceptable and was against humanitarian norms and practices,” the MEA stated in a statement issued later.

The MEA officials also conveyed to Shah, New Delhi’s strong concern over continued unprovoked firing by Pakistan Army and Rangers across the Line of Control and the International Boundary, thus violating the ceasefire agreement of 2003.

New Delhi noted that Pakistan had violated the ceasefire along the LoC and International India altogether 503 times so far so far during 2017.