India, Pakistan trade fire in Kashmir; 1 dead

[1step]

Source: AP

Dec. 31, 2014 7:21 AM EST

SRINAGAR, India (AP) — Indian and Pakistani troops exchanged fire Wednesday near the border that divides the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir, leaving one dead on the Indian side and two wounded on the Pakistani side, officials said.

One side blamed the other for initiating the shooting.

A senior officer with India's Border Security Force, D. Parekh, said Pakistani troops fired on an 11-member Indian patrol team and Indian soldiers retaliated. The gunbattle was ongoing late Wednesday, he said, adding that another Indian soldier was wounded.

Read more: http://bigstory.ap.org/article/510cd47103b1465ab8e5eb533d77efa1/india-says-1-soldier-killed-firing-pakistani-soldiers

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Are four paragraphs really necessary to convey how potentially dangerous this "skirmish" is?

[cosmicone]

1. These skirmishes have been going on for over 20 years.

Pakistan uses heavy artillery fire every fall and early winter to insert trained terrorists on the Indian side of Kashmir. Pakistan has only one policy left - terrorism - and has become quite an expert.
http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2014-12-28/news/57462577_1_pakistani-army-proxy-war-indian-kashmir

Indians always have a measured response except that this year, Narendra Modi has ordered the military to destroy all Pakistani positions whatever it takes. This happened in September and the situation was so bad on the Pakistani side that the Pakistani military begged their media to not report it.

Under Narendra Modi, Pakistan's terrorist shenanigans are not likely to succeed.

[samsingh]

2. its about time. pakistan seems to start a lot of these cross border firing

they export terrorism in many forms as far as I can tell.

[inanna]

3. K & R

[inanna]

4. NY Times says 3 killed

Other outlets reporting more.

Here are snips from NY Times:

NEW DELHI — At least three soldiers were killed on Wednesday as military forces exchanged fire along the India-Pakistan border, where skirmishes between the two countries have been elevated for months.

The origins of Wednesday’s fighting were unclear. An Indian border security official said an Indian soldier was killed Wednesday morning when Pakistani forces fired on a foot patrol in the Samba district of Jammu and Kashmir State.

<snip>

This year saw the most frequent violations of a cease-fire between India and Pakistan since it was signed in 2003. Each side has blamed the other for unprovoked gunfire, civilian deaths and damage to property in the villages along the border. Tens of thousands of civilians have fled their homes on either side.

Manohar Parrikar, India’s defense minister, said Tuesday after a separate border skirmish that in reacting to gunfire, Indian soldiers should act with “double the force,” according to the Press Trust of India.

Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/01/world/asia/skirmishes-flare-on-india-pakistan-border-.html