KARACHI: A soldier was martyred when Indian troops violated ceasefire and resorted to heavy shelling and firing from across the Line of Control in the Khuiratta sector in Azad Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday.

According to a press release issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), personnel of the Pakistan Army responded befittingly to the ceasefire violation. “During an intense exchange of fire, a valiant soldier, Sepoy Fazal Elahi, 35, embraced shahadat,” said the statement.

In the Hotspring sector, said the ISPR press release, Pakistani troops shot down an Indian Army quadcopter that had intruded some 100 metres into Pakistani territory. The Pakistan Army has so far shot down 16 Indian quadcopters for intruding into Pakistani territory.

The ISPR added that in shelling from across the LoC in the Kotkotera sector a 34-year-old male civilian suffered critical injuries.

Published in Dawn, December 31st, 2020