7 Pak soldiers killed in LoC firing: Army

Islamabad: Pakistan army on Monday said at least seven of its soldiers were killed in firing allegedly by Indian troops across the Line of Control. Seven Pakistani soldiers were killed at the LoC in the Bhimber sector in an alleged ceasefire violation by Indian troops late last night, the army said in a statement. Pakistani troops responded to "unprovoked" Indian firing and targeted Indian posts effectively, it said. So far mostly civilian have been killed in the firing on Pakistani side of the LoC. Pakistan Foreign Office last week said that the civilian death toll from alleged Indian shelling has risen to at least 25 in the past few weeks. Pak army chief orders effective response to Indian firing Pakistan army chief General Raheel Sharif today ordered troops to "effectively" respond to firing by India across the Line of Control (LoC) after the death of seven Pakistani soldiers. The army chief was in Jhelum near Rawalpindi to attend the funeral prayers of the dead soldiers, according to army spokesman. He was given a briefing by the senior commanders about the latest situation on the LoC. General Raheel said on the occasion that army "will continue to respond effectively" and it ordered that it should "leave no stone unturned to defend motherland". Meanwhile, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said that Pakistan responded effectively to the Indian fire and "it would have surly killed Indian troops." He claimed that India was hiding its losses on the LoC.