Pak army fires at Indian post on day of electric World cup clash

Pakistan rangers targeted Indian outposts near Tavi in RS Pura sector of Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday, a day when cricket teams from the two nations clashed in their opening match of the World Cup — a tie billed as “war without guns”.

The rangers targeted a Border Security Force (BSF) post on the international border. A police officer said the rangers fired three rounds at 10.50am, once again violating the 2003 ceasefire between India and Pakistan on the Kashmir border. The BSF, whose 127 battalion was at the post, retaliated. No one was injured on the Indian side.

"The firing stopped immediately after the rangers used small arms to target the BSF outpost," the officer said.

Pakistan Saturday too violated the ceasefire in the same when the Rangers targeted a BSF post with a mortar shell. The mortar fell 300 meters away from the post.

The ceasefire violations came after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi rang up his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif on Friday to wish his cricket team luck ahead of the match between the arch-rivals.

Experts said India hoped to use the sporting contest to rebuild troubled relations between the two nations.

In 2011, then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had invited his Pakistan counterpart to watch a game of cricket in India and discuss reviving a peace process. The "cricket diplomacy" had offered more symbolic gestures than any breakthroughs in a conflict that has lasted for more than sixty-five years.