New Delhi: Pakistan requested on Wednesday that the Director Generals of Military Operations (DGMOs) of both countries speak to one another, a request that was granted by India.

According to a report in NDTV, Pakistan asked for the talks after India unleashed a fierce fire assault on Wednesday across the Line of Control in retaliation for Tuesday's mutilations of Indian soldiers by Pakistan.

India had on Tuesday accused Pakistan of beheading a soldier in Kashmir and killing two others, for which it retaliated on Wednesday.

An army spokesperson said that India told the Pakistani DGMO to prevent his troops from indulging in 'nefarious acts' across the border. In turn, the Pakistani DGMO spoke about civilian casualties from Indian firing across the LoC.

Meanwhile, India summoned the Pakistan Deputy High Commissioner to strongly protest ceasefire violations, resultant deaths of Indian soldiers and barbaric mutilation of their bodies.

Separately, Pakistan has conveyed to India that its Prime Minister's Advisor on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz will be attending the Heart of Asia (HoA) conference in Amritsar on December 3 and 4.

"We have received an official confirmation from Pakistan that Aziz would be attending the HoA conference on Afghanistan," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said today.

The conference, which will be addressed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, will see participation of over 40 countries.

However, Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday termed as "naked aggression" the "unprovoked firing" by India across the LoC that resulted in the death of four civilians and three soldiers and said India has failed to comprehend the gravity of the situation.

He said no responsible state can permit ‘targeting innocent civilians in general and ambulances carrying the injured in particular.’

In September, after an army camp in Uri in Kashmir was attacked, leaving 19 soldiers dead, India conducted surgical strikes across the LoC, destroying several terrorist launch pads. However, Pakistan denies that the strikes ever took place, claiming that just 2 Pakistani soldiers were killed.

Tuesday's beheading of Prabhu Singh in Machil in Kupwara, about 80 kilometres from Srinagar is the second mutilation of an Indian soldier in three weeks by Pakistani troops.</s>'If Pakistan were to launch surgical strikes, India would not be able to forget it for generations to come,' Pakistan army chief General Raheeel Sharif warned on November 24, days before he retires from office.

'India has to understand that the permanent state of war that exists between India and Pakistan has to be expected,,' says Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).

'The only way to ensure peace or absence of war is to maintain a militarily-dominant position over Pakistan.'

IMAGE: Artillery has been put in ready condition at strategic locations to effectively respond to Pakistan if it fired artillery shells.

'For the first time since 2001, heavy artillery is being used and cross-border firing has become routine,' says Colonel Anil A Athale.

Photograph: Umar Ganie

The Uri attack and in its aftermath cross border operations on September 29, 2016 by the Indian Army have occupied media space for quite some time.

The sheer number of uniformed and ignorant comments by the usual suspects has been overwhelming. But, of course, what takes the cake are some comments from across the border.

As a knee-jerk reaction, some Pakistanis dubbed the Uri attack as a 'false flag' operation, meaning it was India itself that got 19 of its soldiers killed to 'defame Pakistan' on the eve of the United Nations session! That this kind of comment was made even by a retired Pakistani air marshal is a 'real' cause of concern.

This is nothing new.

Much earlier, the attack on Parliament in 2001, the massacre of families of soldiers at Kaluchak in 2002 and the 26/11 Mumbai attack were all claimed to be done by Indians themselves, for what else, to 'Defame Pakistan'.

To claim that Indian intelligence agencies were responsible for these attacks ignores the reality that in border areas like Jammu and Kashmir, the intelligence agencies are heavily dependent on the army for administrative support.

In fact, most of their operatives even live within army garrisons. This is like accusing someone of painting coal with black paint!

Pakistan has been acknowledged the world over as the epicentre of terrorism and already stands defamed.

Frequent Pakistani assertions that it was India itself that carried out these operations is worrisome as that raises serious doubts about the mental health of a large number of Pakistanis.

Pakistan and its media are well known for promoting falsehood.

During the 1965 War, the Pakistanis claimed that fighting was going on in New Delhi's Lodhi Road area.

In 1971, right till December 15, Pakistan boasted of great victories over India. When the Indian Air Force and Indian Navy attacked and razed oil refineries in Karachi, Pakistani television showed those visuals to claim that they were of Mumbai!

In the 1980s, General Zia-ul Haq kept the loss of the Siachin Glacier hidden from the Pakistani public.

At Kargil in 1999, to maintain the fiction that the attack involved 'Kashmiri freedom fighters', Pakistan refused to accept the bodies of its Northern Light Infantry soldiers.

Pakistan's denial that India carried out 'surgical strikes' inside Pakistan was to be expected as admitting the truth would raise a question mark over the image of invincibility built by the Pakistan army.

When the Americans carried out a raid to kill Osama bin Laden in May 2011, the Pakistan army suffered a popular backlash. It was thus natural for the Pakistan army to hide the truth from its people.

Some Indians opposed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi were worried that the surgical strikes were giving his government further legitimacy and therefore joined the Pakistani chorus and questioned the veracity of the operations.

Some claimed that this was nothing new and even earlier cross-border raids had been carried out.

The truth is that this was the first time multiple operations were carried out to specifically target terror launch pads.

The operations had a clear strategic aim -- of driving a wedge between the Lashkar-e-Tayiba and the Pakistan army. The earlier cross-border raids were mostly local affairs with the limited aim of extracting revenge for border violations.

The strikes were called 'surgical' or 'precision' strikes because they only targeted the terrorists and left the Pakistan army as well civilians alone and avoided any collateral damage.

It has been nearly two months since that incident and the tension on the border has increased manifold. For the first time since 2001, heavy artillery is being used and cross-border firing has become routine.

Does it mean that the cross-border raids were futile? I think the they had a limited objective of pushing back the terrorist bases further inland. No sane person thought that this would bring about a change in Pakistani behaviour.

All those interested in peace must understand that Pakistan is NOT a normal State. It is a 'warrior State' on the lines of Greek Sparta or the ancient Assyrians of present day Iraq.

A Pakistani child is brainwashed in school right from his childhood that the highest duty is to fight. Martyrdom is the goal and Pakistan is surrounded by enemies like Hindu India, Jews and Christians.

The Pakistani army and its attitude merely reflects this basic trait.

The Kashmir dispute is thus a symptom and not the cause. Some years ago in a candid moment, General Pervez Musharraf, the then ruler of Pakistan, had confessed that even if the Kashmir issue is resolved, there would be no peace between India and Pakistan.

A majority of Pakistanis are convinced that India is too heterogeneous and will not remain united for long.

This belief forms the core of its policies towards India since Ayub Khan's days when he told President John F Kennedy in 1961 that India will soon break up and Pakistan will emerge as the single largest State in the subcontinent.

This mindset is reflected in the writings of several Pakistani analysts who mistake the 'noise and din' of Indian democracy for imminent break-up of the country.

In their view, even agitations for separate states within the Indian Union are secessionist.

Indian's north-east has been largely peaceful for several decades now. Yet one finds many Pakistani writers harking back to Mizo or Naga separatism to convince themselves of impending doom for India.

In keeping with its warrior ethos, Pakistan has erected walls of hate around itself. India has to understand that the permanent state of war that exists between India and Pakistan has to be expected.

The only way to ensure peace or absence of war is to maintain a militarily-dominant position over Pakistan. Keeping this posture and hitting back hard is the only guarantee to stall future adventurism.

Dr Manmohan Singh's government erred when it did not respond to the 26/11 attacks. This only got us many more such attacks, as Pakistan advanced the boundaries of Indian tolerance.

In reality, India's forceful response and cross-border raids have actually reduced the chances of nuclear conflagration on the subcontinent by imposing caution on the enemy.

The real solution to the Pakistan problem lies within India.

Pakistan was created on the premise that Hindus and Muslims cannot live peacefully as part of one State.

India has close to 160 million Muslim citizens. Indian Muslims have made great contribution in preserving Indian culture, music, arts and sculpture.

By and large, Indian Muslims today acknowledge the fact that they are possibly the safest in India rather than a theocratic Pakistan.

The daily bloodbath and sectarian violence there has had its impact on Indian Muslims. However, there are historical irritants that have been permitted to fester and spoil relations between the two communities.

Majoritarian moves like the beef ban as well as cases of violence against the minorities going unpunished tarnish India's image. None of these are insurmountable and a cultural and social (not religious) mainstreaming of Muslims can usher in a cooperative relationship that was evolving between the two communities in the 19th century before the British intervened with their divide and rule policy.

Peace and a cooperative relationship between two communities in India will falsify the basic foundations of Pakistan and demolish the walls of hate.

The political boundaries will remain, like between India and Bangladesh or Nepal, but the only way to tame the 'warrior State' is by destroying the foundations of hate.</s>Neelum Valley police Superintendent Jamil Mir told CNN that the shelling came from the Indian-controlled part of Kashmir and that one child was injured in the attack.

Ten others were injured in the town of Nagdar as the bus traveled to the city of Muzaffarabad.

CNN contacted an Indian defense spokesman in Indian-administered Kashmir, Rajesh Kalia, who declined to comment on the attack.

Indian army spokesman Lt. Col. Manish Mehta said soldiers had been exchanging intense gunfire at Pakistani posts since early Wednesday.

Kalia refused to disclose exactly where the Indian firing has been taking place. The bus attack comes a day after India said three of its soldiers were killed on its side of Kashmir. The army's northern command said Tuesday on Twitter that one of those bodies had been mutilated and vowed "retribution." #JKOps 3 soldiers killed in action on LC in Machhal. Body of one soldier mutilated, retribution will be heavy for this cowardly act @adgpi — NorthernComd.IA (@NorthernComd_IA) 22 November 2016 There has been a steady escalation in tensions over recent months between the neighboring nations -- both of which hold nuclear arms -- with regular accusations of ceasefire violations and losses of life on both sides. Each nation has accused the other of provocation. The two countries have been fighting over Kashmir, a Muslim-majority region, since both gained their independence in 1947. China also claims a part of the region. Pakistan and India have fought two wars over Kashmir -- in 1947 and 1965 -- and they came close to a third in 1999. Last week, Pakistani officials said they had evacuated 8,000 villagers while others fled the violence themselves. More evacuations were planned, they said. In October, India relocated more than 10,000 people from its side as officials accused Pakistani troops of shelling over the border. The recent bout of violence flared in September when armed militants killed 19 Indian soldiers at an army base in Uri, about 63 miles (102 kilometers) from Srinagar, the summer capital of Indian-administered Kashmir. In the aftermath, India launched a "surgical strike" against what it described as a terrorist launching pad across the Line of Control dividing the two sides of the disputed region. Pakistan denied the target was a terrorist base.</s>Neelum Valley police Superintendent Jamil Mir told CNN that the shelling came from the Indian-controlled part of Kashmir and that one child was injured in the attack.

Ten others were injured in the town of Nagdar as the bus traveled to the city of Muzaffarabad.

CNN contacted an Indian defense spokesman in Indian-administered Kashmir, Rajesh Kalia, who declined to comment on the attack.

Indian army spokesman Lt. Col. Manish Mehta said soldiers had been exchanging intense gunfire at Pakistani posts since early Wednesday.

Kalia refused to disclose exactly where the Indian firing has been taking place. The bus attack comes a day after India said three of its soldiers were killed on its side of Kashmir. The army's northern command said Tuesday on Twitter that one of those bodies had been mutilated and vowed "retribution." #JKOps 3 soldiers killed in action on LC in Machhal. Body of one soldier mutilated, retribution will be heavy for this cowardly act @adgpi — NorthernComd.IA (@NorthernComd_IA) 22 November 2016 There has been a steady escalation in tensions over recent months between the neighboring nations -- both of which hold nuclear arms -- with regular accusations of ceasefire violations and losses of life on both sides. Each nation has accused the other of provocation. The two countries have been fighting over Kashmir, a Muslim-majority region, since both gained their independence in 1947. China also claims a part of the region. Pakistan and India have fought two wars over Kashmir -- in 1947 and 1965 -- and they came close to a third in 1999. Last week, Pakistani officials said they had evacuated 8,000 villagers while others fled the violence themselves. More evacuations were planned, they said. In October, India relocated more than 10,000 people from its side as officials accused Pakistani troops of shelling over the border. The recent bout of violence flared in September when armed militants killed 19 Indian soldiers at an army base in Uri, about 63 miles (102 kilometers) from Srinagar, the summer capital of Indian-administered Kashmir. In the aftermath, India launched a "surgical strike" against what it described as a terrorist launching pad across the Line of Control dividing the two sides of the disputed region. Pakistan denied the target was a terrorist base.</s>MUZAFFARABAD, Pakistan (Reuters) - Indian shelling across the frontier into Pakistani-controlled Kashmir hit a bus, killing at least nine people, and three Pakistani soldiers were killed in cross-border firing, Pakistani officials said on Wednesday.

India, in a statement, expressed grief at Pakistani civilian casualties but said: “Retaliatory firing by Indian troops has only been carried out targeting locations from where Pakistan has initiated ceasefire violations on Indian posts.”

Describing the bus incident, Pakistani police official Jamil Mir put the number of dead at nine. He told Reuters four bodies were taken to a nearby hospital and five were still trapped in the bus.

Pakistan also said its military killed seven Indian soldiers on Wednesday.

Following the incident, Pakistan said it had summoned the Indian Deputy High Commissioner, J.P. Singh.

Pakistan’s military media wing, ISPR, put the death toll from the bus shelling at seven, adding three Pakistani soldiers were killed “while responding to Indian unprovoked firing.”

ISPR said: “We reserve the right to respond at the place and time of our choosing.”

Lawat, where the bus was hit, is 100 km (60 miles) northeast of Muzaffarabad, the capital of Pakistani-held Kashmir, in the upper belt of the Neelum Valley that straddles the de facto border dividing Kashmir between India and Pakistan.

An Indian military spokesman said the Pakistani Army initiated “indiscriminate” firing on Wednesday on Indian Army posts in Bhimber Gali, Krishna Ghati and Nawshera sectors.

Relations between nuclear-armed neighbours Pakistan and India have been strained for several months, while cross-frontier shelling has intensified leading to the deaths of civilians and soldiers stationed along the disputed frontier.

Kashmir lies at the heart of the tension. The countries have fought two of their three wars over the region since partition and independence from Britain in 1947.</s>Indian troops attacked the bus "with small and big arms" in the town of Lawat, senior police official Jamil Mir told Reuters.

Pakistan's military media wing, ISPR, said in a statement that seven people were killed and seven wounded.

Lawat is 100 km (60 miles) northeast of Muzaffarabad, the capital of Pakistani-held Kashmir, in the upper belt of Neelum Valley that straddles the de facto border splitting Kashmir between India and Pakistan.

Indian officials did not comment on the deaths but a military spokesman said the Pakistani Army initiated "indiscriminate" firing on Wednesday morning on Indian Army posts in Bhimber Gali, Krishna Ghati and Nawshera sectors.

Relations between Pakistan and India have been strained for several months, while cross-frontier shelling has intensified leading to deaths of civilians and soldiers stationed along the disputed frontier.

Kashmir lies at the heart of the tension. The countries have fought two of their three wars over the region since partition and independence from Britain in 1947.</s>Officials say 11 people have died after the artillery attack; no word from India.

Pakistan says that in shelling by India, a passenger bus was hit in the disputed region of Kashmir, killing four civilians and wounding seven.

A local official, Waheed Khan, says civilians were killed when an Indian artillery shell hit the bus in the Neelum Valley on Wednesday. In the latest report, Pakistan officials have claimed that the death toll had risen to 11.

The Pakistan Army says troops are firing back on Indian military positions. There has been no immediate comment from India.

In the escalating twnsion btetween the neighbours, at least 11 people were killed on both sides this week.

Tensions intensified since militants attacked an Indian Army base in Kashmir in September. India alleged that the militants were supported by Pakistan, which has been denied by Islamabad.</s>Pakistani troops on Monday resorted to shelling and firing on Indian posts in four sectors along the Line of Control in Jammu, Rajouri and Poonch districts of Jammu and Kashmir, in which two persons including a jawan were injured.

“There have been unprovoked ceasefire violations by the Pakistani Army in Sunderbani and Naushera sectors of Rajouri district and Pallanwala sector of Jammu district,” a defence spokesman said.

Pakistani troops used 82mm mortar bombs and automatic weapons on Indian positions from 1440 hours in these sectors, he said.

A 67-year-old resident, Mangat Ram, was injured in Pakistani shelling in Khour area in Pallanwala sector, Jammu Deputy Commissioner Simrandeep Singh said.

Pakistani troops also resorted firing along the LoC in Khadi area of Poonch district, according to reports. One jawan was injured in the firing in Poonch.

The defence spokesman said the Indian troops gave “befitting reply” to Pakistani firing.

The ceasefire violations came after a lull of a few days on the border.

On November 12, an army jawan was killed in Pakistani firing in Keran sector of north Kashmir’s Kupwara district.

On November 10, another jawan, Satnam Singh, was killed in sniper shots from across the LoC in Machail sector of North Kashmir.

On November 8, two army jawans were killed in firing and shelling along LoC in Naushera sector of Rajouri district.

On November 6, two army jawans were killed and five others -- two soldiers, a Border Security Force officer and two women – were injured as Pakistani army opened fire in an attempt to facilitate two infiltration bids along the LoC in Krishna Ghati and Poonch sectors of Poonch district.

The worst-ever Pakistani shelling targeting civil population took place on November 1 when eight persons, including two children and four women, were killed and 22 others injured along the International Border and the LoC in five sectors of Jammu-Kashmir, forcing Indian troops to give befitting reply by destroying 14 Pakistani posts and killing two of their troopers.

The 2003 India-Pakistan ceasefire agreement has virtually become redundant with a whopping 286 incidents of firing and shelling along LoC and IB in Jammu and Kashmir by Pakistani troops that resulted in death of 26 people, including 14 security personnel, since the surgical strike on terrorist launch pads in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

There have been 186 ceasefire violations by Pakistani troops along the over 190 km International Border in Jammu frontier, while 104 violations of the agreement took place along the over 500 km Line of Control.</s>Indian and Pakistani DGMOs on Wednesday had an unscheduled hotline interaction amidst cross border firing from both sides.

Lt. Gen. Ranbir SIngh spoke to his counterpart at 6:30 pm, according to a press release. He was briefed by the Pakistani side on civilian casualities due to Indian firing. The Indian DGMO has emphatically stated that retaliatory firing was carried out targetting locations from where Pakistan had initiated ceasefire violation.

Lt. Gen. Singh had also brought the unethical mutilation of Indian jawans, cross-border infiltration and casualities caused on the Indian side due to firing from Pakistan, during the telephonic conversation.

Sources told The Hindu that Pakistani side has requested for a DGMO-level talks.</s>MUZAFFARABAD, Pakistan (AP) — Pakistani officials say the death toll from shelling by India of a passenger bus and villages along the dividing line in the disputed region of Kashmir has risen to 11.

Waheed Khan, a local official, says an artillery shell hit the bus in the Neelum Valley on Wednesday, killing nine people.

Police official Waseem Khan says another two died when a mortar shell hit their house in the Nakyal sector of the Pakistani-held part of Kashmir.

Pakistani army says troops are firing back on Indian military positions.

An Indian army spokesman, Col. Nitin Joshi, says India was responding to Pakistan’s violation of a cease-fire.

Tensions in the Himalayan region of Kashmir, which is divided between the two nuclear-armed neighbors and claimed by both in its entirety, have escalated recently with deadly exchanges.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

Pakistan says shelling from India has targeted a passenger bus in the disputed region of Kashmir, killing four civilians and wounding seven.

A local official, Waheed Khan, says the civilians were killed when an Indian artillery shell hit the bus in the Neelum Valley on Wednesday.

The Pakistani army says troops are firing back on Indian military positions. There has been no immediate comment from India.

Pakistan and India have been trading fire recently in the Himalayan region, which is divided between the two nuclear-armed neighbors and claimed by both in its entirety.

This week, at least 11 people were killed on both sides.

Tensions have intensified since militants attacked an Indian army base in Kashmir in September. India alleged the militants were supported by Pakistan, charges denied by Islamabad.
Pakistani officials say nine civilians have been killed after cross-border Indian shelling hit their passenger bus in Neelam Valley, northeast of Muzaffarabad, while three Pakistani soldiers were killed in other cross-border firing incidents.