SRINAGAR (India), Apr 26 (AP): Pakistani soldiers fired at Indian posts along the highly militarized frontier in disputed Kashmir for a second consecutive night, the Indian military said Saturday, as tensions flared between the nuclear-armed rivals following a deadly attack on tourists last week.
India described the massacre, in which gunmen killed 26 people, most of them Indian tourists, as a "terror attack" and accused Pakistan of backing it.
Pakistan denies the charge. The assault, near the resort town of Pahalgam in India-controlled Kashmir, was claimed by a previously unknown militant group calling itself the Kashmir Resistance.It was the restive region's worst assault targeting civilians in years. In the days since, tensions have risen dangerously between India and Pakistan, which have fought two of their three wars over Kashmir. The region is split between them and claimed by both in its entirety.
The Indian army said Saturday that soldiers from multiple Pakistani army posts overnight opened fire at Indian troops "all across the Line of Control" in Kashmir. "Indian troops responded appropriately with small arms," the statement said. There were no casualties reported, the statement added.
There was no comment from Pakistan, and the incidents could not be independently verified. In the past, each side has accused the other of starting border skirmishes in the Himalayan region.
Markets and bazaars were open in Pakistan-administered Kashmir on Saturday, and there was no sign of evacuations from villages located near the Line of Control.
Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday said the country was "open to participating in any neutral, transparent and credible investigation" into the attack.
Saudi Arabia is trying to defuse tensions between India and Pakistan, a senior Saudi official told AFP on Friday.
"The Kingdom is undertaking efforts to prevent an escalation between India and Pakistan," the senior Saudi official said, on condition of anonymity.
"The two countries are allies of Saudi Arabia and we do not want the situation to get out of control."
Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan has held separate phone calls with his Indian and Pakistani counterparts, his office said on Friday.
During the discussions, he "reviewed developments in the situation and efforts made to ease tensions", it added.
After the tourist attack, India suspended a crucial water-sharing treaty and closed the only functional land border crossing. It revoked visas issued to Pakistanis with effect from Sunday.
Pakistan retaliated by canceling visas issued to Indians, closing its airspace to Indian-owned or Indian-operated airlines, and suspending trade with India. Nationals from both sides began heading to their home countries through the Wagah border near Pakistan's eastern city of Lahore on Friday.
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