India military officer killed in exchange of fire with Pakistan on Kashmir LoC

An Indian military officer was killed Tuesday in firing from Pakistan side on Line of Control (LoC)-- dividing Kashmir, officials said.

The trooper was killed in Nowgam sector of frontier Kupwara district, about 125 km northwest of Srinagar city, the summer capital of Indian-controlled Kashmir.

Indian military officials said Pakistani troops fired without provocation.

"This afternoon, a junior commissioned officer (JCO) was killed in Nowgam sector in a sniper attack by Pakistan troops," a military spokesman Col Manish Kumar told Xinhua.

"The trooper was critically wounded in the firing and succumbed immediately."

Reports said following the killing, Indian side also fired in retaliation and the exchange continued for sometime.

Security level talks between India and Pakistan were cancelled hours before the proposed schedule over the issue of Kashmir.

The two sides were supposed to discuss cease-fire violations on LoC and border between them during the meeting.

Both New Delhi and Islamabad accuse each other of resorting to unprovoked firings and violating cease-fire agreements. And both sides maintain that their troops gave befitting reply to the other side.

The troops of India and Pakistan intermittently exchange fire on 720 km-long LoC and 198-km IB in Kashmir, despite an agreement in 2003 to observe a cease-fire. Though some violations have been reported on both sides, the cease-fire however remains in effect.

LoC is a de facto border that divides Kashmir into India and Pakistan controlled parts. The LoC is heavily guarded by military on both sides.

Kashmir, the Himalayan region divided between India and Pakistan is claimed by both in full. Since their independence from Britain, the two countries have fought three wars, two exclusively over Kashmir. Enditem