Pakistan and India exchanged fresh fire across the Kashmir border today, the Pakistani military said, with Indian officials stating there was no damage as tensions rise between the nuclear-armed rivals.

That was reported by www.thedailystar.net.

“Pakistani troops befittingly responded to Indian unprovoked firing” which started at 4:00 am (2300 GMT) and continued for four hours in Bhimber sector on the Pakistani side of the border, a military statement said.

It did not mention casualties.

“There was small arms fire and mortar shells fire from across the border in Akhnoor sector which lasted for around two hours (4:00 am to 6:00 am),” Pawan Kotwal, a top civilian official in Jammu and Kashmir state on the Indian side, told AFP.

“No damage was caused. We are ready for any eventuality but it is peaceful in Jammu region.”

The skirmish came two days after India claimed it had carried out “surgical strikes” across the heavily militarised Line of Control (LoC), the de facto border in the disputed territory, on what it called “terrorist” targets several kilometres (miles) inside Pakistan-controlled Kashmir.

India said surgical strikes were carried out on terror launch pads in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir, inflicting heavy casualties on terrorists and ‘those protecting them”, indicating a change of stand on the rules of engagement on the disputed line of control.

Indian DGMO Lt Gen Ranbir Singh announced that Pakistan has been informed about the strikes and that India has no intention of continuing the operations but is ready for any reaction from the Pak side.