ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Foreign Office (FO) on Friday summoned Indian Deputy High Commissioner J.P. Singh and condemned the unprovoked ceasefire violations by the Indian forces in Chirikot and Nezapir sectors, in which two civilians were killed and five others injured.
Foreign Affairs Ministry Director General (SA & SAARC) Dr Mohammad Faisal, urged the Indian side to respect the 2003 Ceasefire arrangement; investigate this and other incidents of ceasefire violations; instruct the Indian forces to respect the ceasefire in letter and spirit; and maintain peace on the LoC and the Working Boundary.
He urged that the Indian side should permit United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP) to play its mandated role as per the United Nations Security Council resolutions.
The foreign office said despite calls for restraint, India continues to indulge in ceasefire violations. In 2017, Indian forces carried out more than 1300 ceasefire violations along the Line of Control and the Working Boundary, resulting in the deaths of 52 civilians and injuring 170 others, as compared to 382 ceasefire violations in 2016, the FO said.
The FO said deliberate targeting of civilians was deplorable and contrary to human dignity and international human rights and humanitarian laws. The ceasefire violations by India are a threat to regional peace & security and may lead to a strategic miscalculation, the FO concluded.
Published in Daily Times, November 18th 2017.
