Four civilians were injured, three residential houses damaged in fresh cross-border firing in Kamalkote area along the Line of Control in Uri on Sunday, officials said.
The injured were identified as Riyaz Ahmad, Meena Begum,Asif Ahmad and Ishtiyaq Ahmad—all residents of KandiBarjala, Kamalkote.
Two of the four injured were referred to Srinagar hospitalsfor advanced treatment, a source said.
Local residents told Greater Kashmir that the shellingstarted on Saturday midnight and continued intermittently for several hours.
However, its intensity from both sides increased after 2pmon Sunday, they said.
“During the midnight shelling, a residential house suffereddamage, but on Sunday afternoon, the Indian and Pakistani forces resorted toheavy shelling, resulting in injuries to four persons and damage to two moreresidential houses,” said Anwar Hussain, a resident of KundiBarjala, a villageclose to the LoC.
Sub-divisional magistrate Uri, Riyaz Ahmad, confirmed theinjuries and damage to three residential houses.
Earlier, in an incident of cross-border shelling inKamalkote on March 1, a local resident, later identified as Nazir Ahmad Khan,was severely injured after splinters of a shell hit him. He was immediatelyrushed to a Srinagar hospital, where his condition is still not stable. Threeresidential houses were also damaged in the incident.
Meanwhile, the armies of India and Pakistan exchangedgunfire in two areas along the Line of Control in Poonch on Sunday, officialssaid. They, however, said that the LoC areas in Rajouri were “relatively calm”since last night.
An official source said that in Krishna Ghati area ofPoonch, firing started at 4.30am and lasted for more than three hours, duringwhich firing with small arms and heavy mortar shelling took place.
In Poonch also, exchange of fire with small arms took place for an hour at around 11am, the source said.
JAVED IQBAL