13 civilians killed in Pakistan's ceasefire violations along LoC in Poonch

Thirteen civilians were killed and 59 others injured — including 44 in Poonch district — following a surge in ceasefire violations by Pakistan along the Line of Control (LoC), according to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

The shelling began days after Operation Sindoor, an Indian Army strike conducted on May 7, which targeted nine terror camps located in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). The operation was a response to the Pahalgam terror attack and focused on eliminating key figures from the Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) groups.

Following the Indian action, Pakistani forces intensified artillery and small arms fire across the LoC, hitting civilian areas in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch, Rajouri, Kupwara, Baramulla, Uri, and Akhnoor sectors.

According to officials, the shelling caused significant damage to homes and public infrastructure, leading to panic in border communities. Residents fled with their families and livestock, only beginning to return on Thursday.

“We left our homes in fear, and so we fled in the night during the shelling. There were two buildings which got damaged. Two shells also fell on my house. So we fled from here. The whole village was deserted, and some people also took their livestock with them,” said Sailesh Kumar, a resident of a border village in Rajouri.

Government sources said the Indian Army has responded proportionately to the unprovoked firing and is continuing surveillance along the LoC to monitor further developments.

The External Publicity and Public Diplomacy Division of the MEA confirmed the casualty figures and said Pakistan’s actions followed a pattern of escalating cross-border fire since April 25–26.