Indian and Pakistani border guards trade gunfire, 2 killed

Indian and Pakistani border guards traded gunfire in the divided region of Kashmir, leaving two Indian civilians dead and another 16 wounded, an Indian official said Friday. Simrandeep Singh, a local administrator, accused the Pakistani guards of unprovoked firing of small arms and mortars across the border in the RS Pura sector on Thursday night. The Indian border guards returned fire, he said, adding that the injured Indian villagers have been evacuated to nearby hospitals. There was no immediate comment by the Pakistani side. Tension has mounted between the countries following scrapping of talks between their national security advisers earlier this week because of disagreements related largely to Kashmir. A cease-fire on the border has largely held between the countries since 2003, but gunbattles and border skirmishes are fairly common. India and Pakistan have fought two wars over control of Kashmir, according to AP.

-Shuvo-