(MENAFN- The Journal Of Turkish Weekly) Pakistan has claimed to have shot down an Indian spy plane for crossing into Pakistani territory, on the same day as both Indian and Pakistani border forces exchanged mortar fire.
"An Indian spy drone which intruded into Pakistan along the Line of Control was shot down by Pakistan army troops near Bhimber [district] on Wednesday," said a statement from the Pakistan army's media wing, Inter Services Public Relations, adding that the plane was equipped for aerial photography.
Pakistan's claim and the fresh cease-fire violations came after a rare meeting between Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi on the sidelines of a summit in Russia, where they pledged to support each other in tackling terrorism.
"A 42-year-old woman was killed in the firing from the Pakistani side, and a Border Security Force soldier and five other people have been injured so far on our side," a senior police official in Indian-held Kashmir told Anadolu Agency.
Indian authorities claimed a Pakistani sniper started the firing on Wednesday morning. Indian police said the clash intensified quickly with both sides beginning mortar shelling.
According to the Border Security Force (BSF), this was the seventh cease-fire violation between the two countries so far this month. Earlier on July 9, an Indian BSF soldier was killed in northern Indian-held Kashmir in cross-border firing.
In the last four days, the Indian Army claimed to have killed two militants and foiled two attempts of infiltration from the Pakistani side of the Line of Control, which separates the divided Kashmir.
Kashmir, a Muslim-majority Himalayan region, is held by India and Pakistan in parts and claimed by both in full.
The two countries have fought three wars - in 1948, 1965 and 1971 - since they were partitioned in 1947, two of which were fought over Kashmir.
Since 1989, Kashmiri resistance groups in Indian-held Kashmir have been fighting against Indian rule for independence or for unification with neighboring Pakistan. More than 70,000 Kashmiris have been killed so far in the violence, most of them by Indian forces. India maintains over half a million soldiers in the Indian-held Kashmir.
A part of Kashmir is also held by China.
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