India and Pakistan trade accusations as cross-border raid kills 1 soldier

6 Jan, 2013 06:04 / Updated 12 years ago

Indian soldiers assaulted a Pakistani military outpost in Kashmir, killing one soldier, the Pakistani military has alleged. Indian officials claim Pakistani troops "initiated unprovoked firing,” shelling a civilian home on Indian territory.

An official statement accused India of violating the “line of control” dividing the territory, which both countries claim.Another soldier was critically wounded as troops continued to exchange fire in the disputed region, the Pakistani military’s public relations office said."Pakistan Army troops effectively responded to the attack successfully," said the statement alleging that the Sawan Patra army checkpoint had been raided by the Indian military."We retaliated only using small arms. We believe it was clearly an attempt on their part to facilitate infiltration of militants," Colonel Brijesj Pandey, official spokesperson for the Indian army in Kashmir said in a statement.A delicate ceasefire between the two nations has been in effect since 2003. The truce is occasionally violated by mortar fire and shooting, however, accusations of cross-border raids are rarely reported.India halted peace negotiations with Pakistan in 2008 following the terrorist attacks in Mumbai carried out by Islamist terrorists trained in Pakistan. The attacks killed over 160 people and injured over 300. Diplomatic talks between the two countries were resumed in February of last year.