The Indian government has declared that 3 of its soldiers have been killed by Pakistani shelling and shooting in two clashes in the disputed region of Kashmir. It is the most recent in a series of clashes that have occurred in the province which have left scores dead on both sides.
Lieutenant Colonel Devender Anand of the Indian Army stated that his forces returned fire though it is unclear as to whether there were any injuries or fatalities on the Pakistani side. Colonel Anand blamed the incident entirely on Pakistani aggression and stated that it was in clear breach of a ceasefire along the Line of Control (LoC) that divides the two states.
Pakistan's foreign ministry spokesman Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri released a statement in which he said the incidents were enflamed by India as a way to:
"Divert world attention from its human rights violations in Indian-occupied Kashmir".
India officially controls around two-thirds of Kashmir, which straddles the border between the North-West of India and the North-East of Pakistan. Pakistan controls the other third. However, the majority of the Kashmiri population in the Indian controlled sector are Muslim and many would prefer the region to be part of the Pakistani state. Currently, about 75% of the Kashmiri population are Muslim and around 25% are Hindu.
Tensions have existed in the region ever since Pakistan declared independence from India in 1947 and open conflict has erupted between the two states over Kashmir both in 1947 and in 1965. Both wars resulted in thousands of deaths on both sides and a UN backed stalemate.
Recent tensions were exacerbated in 2019 when a suicide bombing killed 40 Indian paramilitary soldiers in Indian-administered Kashmir to which India responded with air-strikes.
Many Muslims in Indian held Kashmir complain that they are discriminated against due to their religion and that they are denied access to government services and jobs. This has been exacerbated since the right-wing Hindu nationalist party, the BJP, took power in India. Since then, killings of Muslims in Kashmir have taken place at the hands of the police and the introduction of a new Citizenship Act has laid out the possibility of Muslim Indians being denied the legal rights of Hindus. Under the Act, introduced by the BJP, it is possible that non-Hindu Indians may even be stripped of their Indian citizenship entirely, essentially making Kashmiris, and other Indian Muslims, foreigners in their own country.
Both India and Pakistan are armed with nuclear weapons and it is only hoped that a de-escalation of the tensions can be achieved soon.
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