Pakistani troops shell villages along in Kathua, two houses damaged

Jammu: Pakistani troops shelled mortar bombs on villages along the International Border (IB) in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kathua district, damaging two houses and injuring cattle, officials said on Wednesday.

The heavy mortar shelling by Pakistani troops in violation of the ceasefire triggered panic among border residents.

The firing and mortar shelling on Rathua and its neighbouring villages in the Hiranagar sector began around 2040 hours on Tuesday, they said.

The shells hit dozens of houses and damaged two, and injured cattle, they said.

The border residents staged a protest against Pakistan for the unprovoked ceasefire on Wednesday. They demanded that Pakistan be taught a lesson and the border residents be relocated to safer areas.

“The shelling began soon after we completed our dinner and went to sleep. A shell tore the roof of our house and narrowly missed us,” Deleep Kumar of Rathua village said.

He said that firing and shelling by Pakistani troops has been frequent in the past month, creating a fear psychosis among the residents.