Six civilians injured in Pakistan shelling along LoC in north Kashmir
The shelling, which started around midnight in Uri and Tangdhar, forced people to take refuge in underground bunkers, where they spent a tensed night. This was the 13th consecutive night of firing amid heightened tensions between India and Pakistan following the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam that killed 26 people, mostly tourists. This is also the first time shelling was carried out since the ceasefire agreement was renewed in 2021.
While the Pakistani shelling continued till daybreak in Uri, it is still underway in Tangdhar though the intensity is lower.
'We are living in panic since 1am when the shelling began. We don't have bunkers so are staying put at home,' said Arif Ahmad, a resident of Uri. Another resident of Salamabad said three houses in the area were damaged in the shelling. 'The shells landed in residential areas. We spent a sleepless night. We are seeing such intense shelling after long time,' he said.
A senior health officer said he had inputs about injuries in Uri's Salamabad town.
At Karnah in Kupwara district, the residents had to take shelter in underground bunkers to escape the shelling, officials said. Some houses and other buildings suffered heavy damage, while few caught fire due to the heavy shelling from across the LoC, they said. 'We spent a terrible long night. It was as if the night would never end. Our hearts sank every time we heard a loud bang of heavy shells. We had to move to safer locations and take shelter to save our lives amid the heavy shelling,' Naseer Ahmad, a local resident, said
Due to the cross-LoC shelling, the government closed all educational institutions in north Kashmir and parts of Jammu region. 'In view of the prevailing situation, all educational institutions in Baramulla, Kupwara, and Gurez will remain closed till further orders,' Kashmir divisional commissioner Vijay Kumar Bidhuri said.
Elsewhere in the Kashmir Valley, including Srinagar, people spent an anxious night after news broke about the missile strikes.
With heightened air activity around Srinagar, residents were awake through the second half of the night, anxiously monitoring social media and news channels for updates. 'I was woken up by the noise as jets were flying around. I checked social media and came to know about the strikes in Pakistan,' Srinagar resident Owais Nisar said.
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