Ceasefire violations resulted in 33 civilian deaths in 2020

India committed 2900 ceasefire violation in the past year, resulting in 33 civilians being martyred as well as another 260 suffering injuries, said Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Minister for Physical Planning and Housing Chaudhry Tariq Farooq on Friday.

“Not only the civilians, but they also targeted the UN military observers in this year while they were on a routine monitoring mission along the LoC,” said the minister while talking to a local news outlet.

Of the 33 killed due to firing over the Line of Control, 16 men and 17 women were martyred. Of the 260 injured, 161 were men while 99 were women.

“Even though the whole world was hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, [the] Indian army did not discontinue its ghastly practice of pounding our unarmed civilian populations along the dividing line,” said Chaudhry.

He said that the youngest person killed in these attacks was two-year-old Adeeb Sudhir of Neelum valley while the oldest victims were Jan Begum of district Bhimber and Muhammad Bashir of district Haveli, both over 75.

Most recently, a soldier was martyred when Indian troops violated the ceasefire and resorted to heavy shelling and firing from across the Line of Control (LoC) in the Khuiratta sector on Wednesday, said a press release issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).

Meanwhile, the most recent incident of a civilian being killed due to the actions of India troops took place on Tuesday in the Tatta Pani and Jandrot areas, where A 50-year-old woman was killed and three others were injured.

“There are heart-wrenching stories of death and destruction from almost all areas along the LoC. [Stories of] people caught in indiscriminate shelling and people targeted by trigger-happy Indian snipers even during [moments of] apparent calm,” said the AJK minister.

Revealing the details of fatalities according to the district, he said nine civilians had lost their lives in district Kotli, seven in Neelum valley, six in district Haveli, five in district Bhimber, four in district Poonch and two in Jhelum valley.

A day earlier, AJK President Sardar Masood Khan had strongly condemned ceasefire violation by Indian occupation forces in different sectors of the LoC in Kotli district.

“The deliberate targeting of the civilian population and the civilian infrastructure by Indian troops in Khoiratta sector of AJK is highly reprehensible,” he had said.

Expressing grave concern over the fast-growing human rights violations by Indian troops in the occupied territory, Masood had warned the Indian government to refrain from such brutal tactics and had told them to remember that the use of brute force cannot convince the people of Kashmir to abandon their struggle.

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