[DAWN] At least one civilian was killed while seven others were maimed in a village in Azad Jammu and Kashmire in yet another "unprovoked" ceasefire violation by Indian forces from across the Line of Control (LoC), local officials said on Monday.
According to Muhammad Zaheer, a disaster management officer in Haveli, Indian forces began shelling and firing in the Nezapir sector at about 3:45pm and in Khurshidabad sector at around 6pm on Sunday "without any provocation".
"They used both small and big arms and targeted civilian populations, restricting people indoors till late night," he said.
Rehmat Jan, a 45-year-old woman who lived in Mandhar village, died after being hit by the splinters of a mortar shell, Zaheer told Dawn. Another resident of the village, Begum Jan (48) was injured due to Indian shelling, he said.
Three civilians ‐ Zainab Jan (60), Muhammad Naeem Dar (24) and Ulfat Rashid (17) ‐ were maimed in Kairni village while Munir Hussain (20), Kausar Parveen (26) and Nosheen (18) were maimed in Kachar Ban.
The casualties occurred in Khurshidabad and Nezapir sectors of Haveli district ‐ which lies near the LoC ‐ on Sunday night but the authorities shared the information with media on Monday. Haveli Deputy Commissioner Raja Arshad Mahmood said that since the affected villages are located near the LoC, details of the firing reached authorities late on Sunday night.
"After verification of each incident, the same has been communicated to the concerned offices in Muzaffarabad today," he said.
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