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Mint
04-05-2025
- Politics
- Mint
Pakistan violates ceasefire agreement with India for 10th day: Why does it continue to fire across the Line of Control?
Pakistani troops continued their pattern of unprovoked small arms firing across multiple sectors along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir, drawing a strong and effective response from the Indian Army, officials said on Sunday. This marks the 10th consecutive night of cross-border firing, occurring amid escalating tensions following the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam, which killed 26 people, most of them tourists. According to officials, ceasefire violations were reported from eight locations across five districts of the Union Territory during the intervening night of Saturday and Sunday. Fortunately, no casualties have been reported so far. 'During the night of May 3 and 4, Pakistan Army posts resorted to unprovoked small arms fire across the LoC in areas opposite Kupwara, Baramulla, Poonch, Rajouri, Mendhar, Naushera, Sunderbani, and Akhnoor in J&K. Indian Army responded promptly and proportionately,' a defence spokesperson said. The ceasefire violations along the LoC and International Border (IB) have been very rare since India and Pakistan renewed the ceasefire agreement on February 25, 2021. India shares a total of 3,323 km of border with Pakistan, divided into three parts: the International Border (IB), approximately 2,400 km from Gujarat to the northern banks of the Chenab River in Akhnoor, Jammu; the Line of Control (LoC), 740 km long, running from parts of Jammu to parts of Leh; and the Actual Ground Position Line (AGPL), 110 km long, dividing the Siachen region from NJ 9842 to Indira Col in the north. The LoC, serving as the de facto border, stretches for approximately 740 kilometres, from Sangam in Kashmir to Point NJ-9842 near the Siachen Glacier. In Jammu, the LoC transitions into what India considers the International Border (IB), as India has no territorial claims on Pakistani Punjab. The Ceasefire Line between India and Pakistan was initially established under the Karachi Agreement of 1949, following the 1948–49 war. It was later renamed the Line of Control (LoC) after the Simla Agreement in 1972. Though not recognised as an international boundary, the LoC functions as a military control line between the two countries. However, cross-border firing and the infiltration of Pakistan-backed terrorists, particularly since the onset of the Kashmir insurgency in 1989, along with attacks by Pakistani Border Action Teams (BATs), have rendered the ceasefire 'agreement' effectively meaningless. Periods like the 1990s and the span between 2016 and 2021 saw over a thousand violations annually, with the 1990s often described by Indian Army veterans as a 'free for all' along the Line of Control. In 2021, both militaries found mutual incentive to curb hostilities and reaffirmed the 2003 ceasefire understanding, originally established ahead of the India-Pakistan Composite Dialogue. Despite the broader breakdown in diplomatic and economic ties since 2019, the military channel remains the only active line of bilateral communication, giving both nations a reason to maintain the current ceasefire arrangement. According to (Retd) IFS officer Anil Trigunayat, former Ambassador to Jordan, Libya and Malta, ceasefire violations are mostly cover fires to enable the entry of terrorists, and to provoke India to retaliate. 'Mostly it does to facilitate the entry of terrorists across the border by providing fire cover. Secondly it wishes to provoke India to retaliate and use grey zone warfare to accuse India of violation to garner international sympathy and domestic support as it goes through tremendous financial and socio-economic stress," the former Ambassador told Livemint. Over the past four years, Pakistan's economy has steadily declined, while the military's dominant hold over the country is increasingly being challenged by insurgent groups such as the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), and Balochistan Liberation Front (BLF). Following the Taliban's return to power in Afghanistan, the TTP significantly escalated its operations, leading to a 73% surge in terror attacks across Pakistan in the first 21 months of Taliban rule, according to a report by ORF. The province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has been hit hardest, witnessing an alarming 279.8% rise in incidents, jumping from 572 in 2021 to 2,173 in 2024. Meanwhile, the BLA and BLF have also stepped up their offensives, particularly targeting Pakistani military installations, further destabilizing internal security from multiple fronts, according to the report. First Published: 4 May 2025, 08:14 PM IST
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Business Standard
03-05-2025
- Politics
- Business Standard
Pakistan violates ceasefire for 9th consecutive night; India responds
Pakistani forces have continued unprovoked ceasefire violations along the Line of Control (LoC) for the ninth consecutive night, targeting the Kupwara, Uri, and Akhnoor sectors in Jammu and Kashmir. The Indian military responded in a "calibrated and proportionate manner," according to a report by India Today. The renewed hostilities come in the wake of heightened tensions between India and Pakistan following the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam, which claimed 26 lives. In response to repeated violations, India issued a stern warning to Pakistan three days ago. On Tuesday, the Director Generals of Military Operations (DGMOs) from both countries held a hotline conversation to discuss the situation and address Pakistan's continued cross-border firing. The current wave of ceasefire breaches began on the night of April 24, just hours after India suspended the Indus Waters Treaty as a direct response to the Pahalgam attack. Since then, Pakistani troops have engaged in sustained firing across several locations along the LoC, beginning in the Kashmir Valley. In a series of retaliatory measures, Pakistan has closed its airspace to Indian carriers, suspended bilateral trade, and shut down the Wagah border crossing. It has also issued a stark warning, stating that any Indian attempt to divert water under the Indus Waters Treaty would be "treated as an act of war." The two nations had reaffirmed a ceasefire agreement in February 2021, pledging to uphold all previous understandings related to the LoC and other sectors. That pact was seen as a step toward de-escalation. However, the recent violence signals a troubling departure from that commitment. India shares a 3,323-kilometer border with Pakistan, spanning the International Border from Gujarat to Jammu, the LoC stretching through Jammu to parts of Leh, and the Actual Ground Position Line in the Siachen Glacier. Security agencies are closely monitoring the situation as cross-border tensions continue to mount.
The Hindu
02-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Pakistani troops violate ceasefire for 8th night, residents near LoC begin readying bunkers
Pakistani troops resorted to unprovoked firing along the Line of Control (LoC) and International Border (IB) in five districts of Jammu and Kashmir, prompting retaliation from the Indian Army, officials said on Friday (May 2, 2025). This is the eighth consecutive night of unprovoked firing along the LoC, amid heightened tensions following the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam in which 26 people were killed. Pahalgam terror attack updates: May 2, 2025 Civilians living along the LoC and IB have begun cleaning their community and individual bunkers to make them habitable in case shelling happens. 'During the night of May 1-2, 2025, Pakistani Army posts resorted to unprovoked small arms fire from posts across the LoC opposite Kupwara, Baramulla, Poonch, Naushera, and Akhnoor areas of Jammu and Kashmir,' a defence spokesperson in Jammu said. Indian Army troops responded in a calibrated and proportionate manner, the spokesperson added. Initially beginning with unprovoked small arms firing at several posts along the LoC in Kupwara and Baramulla districts of north Kashmir, Pakistan swiftly expanded its ceasefire violations to the Poonch sector and subsequently to the Akhnoor sector of the Jammu region. This was followed by small arms firing at several posts along the LoC in the Sunderbani and Naushera sectors of Rajouri district. Subsequently, the firing expanded to the Pargwal sector along the International Border in Jammu district. The renewed ceasefire violations come despite a recent hotline conversation between the Directors General of Military Operations (DGMOs) of India and Pakistan, during which the Indian side is learnt to have cautioned Pakistan. Since the night of April 24, just hours after India suspended the Indus Waters Treaty following terror attack in Pahalgam, Pakistani troops have been resorting to unprovoked firing at various places along the LoC in J&K, starting from the Kashmir Valley. Pakistan blocked its airspace for Indian airlines, closed the Wagah border crossing, suspended all trade with India, and warned that any attempt to divert water would be considered an "act of war". The ceasefire along the borders was reaffirmed in February 2021, when both countries agreed to observe the 2003 agreement in letter and spirit. However, the current situation marks a significant departure from the relative calm maintained since then. India shares a total of 3,323 km of border with Pakistan, divided into three parts: the International Border (IB), approximately 2,400 km from Gujarat to the northern banks of the Chenab River in Akhnoor, Jammu; the Line of Control (LoC), 740 km long, running from parts of Jammu to parts of Leh; and the Actual Ground Position Line (AGPL), 110 km long, dividing the Siachen region from NJ 9842 to Indira Col in the north. Civilians living along the LoC and International Border started getting their community and individual bunkers cleaned to make them habitable in case of an escalation to shelling. The Union government sanctioned the construction of 14,460 individual and community bunkers in 2017. Over 8,600 community and individual bunkers have been built in five districts: Samba, Kathua, Jammu, Poonch, and Rajouri, officials said. While harvesting of crops along R S Pura and Arnia sectors along the IB has been completed, it is still going on in Kathua, Samba, Rajouri, and Poonch districts. "This is being done in view of the tensions along the borders," an official said.
