Cross-border firing kills three Indian soldiers in Kashmir: Army
At least three Indian soldiers have been killed in an exchange of fire with Pakistani forces along the de facto border dividing the disputed region of Kashmir.
Indian army spokesman Colonel Rajesh Kalia said one soldier died after coming under Pakistani sniper fire in Machhal sector on Wednesday.
Kalia added that Indian soldiers retaliated by targeting the Pakistani army posts across the Line of Control (LoC).
An Indian army statement earlier said that at least two soldiers had been killed in Pakistani firing in Naushera sector.
In a separate incident, Indian troops shot dead two suspected militants in a firefight in Sopore area of Indian-controlled Kashmir.
Six civilians on the Pakistani side of Kashmir have been killed in the ongoing skirmishes between the two countries across the LoC since November 7.
Indian and Pakistani forces have been engaged in similar clashes and traded fire across the de facto border in the disputed region over the past months. Each side accuses the other of provocation.
Relations between India and Pakistan have been strained in recent months, with New Delhi blaming Islamabad for a raid on an army base in Indian-controlled Kashmir in September, which killed 19 soldiers.
The Indian army blamed Pakistan-based militants for the assault. Islamabad denies any role in the deadly incident.
Diplomatic tensions generated between the two sides in late October, when India ordered one employee of the Pakistani High Commission out of the country, saying he was a suspected spy. Islamabad expelled an Indian diplomat in a tit-for-tat move.
Muslim-majority Kashmir has been divided between India and Pakistan, but claimed in full by both, since the two countries gained independence from Britain in 1947.
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