At least 19 killed in India-Pakistan border firing
At least 19 people have been killed in recent firing between India and Pakistan across the disputed border in Kashmir.
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The two nuclear-armed powers have been ratcheting up shelling and small-arms fire for weeks, with each accusing the other of violating a 2003 ceasefire.
Pakistan said four people were killed and five injured in its part of Kashmir this week when the two countries exchanged heavy fire in the Nakyal sector along the Line of Control.
Another six were killed and 10 injured last week, Pakistani officials said.
"It appears as if a full blown war is going on between India and Pakistan," said Mohammad Saeed, a resident of the village of Mohra in the region.
On the Indian side of the Line of Control, seven people - including two children - were killed on Tuesday by Pakistani shelling, a senior police officer told Reuters.
An Indian soldier and a civilian were also killed, an Indian army spokesman said.
On the diplomatic front, both nations expelled envoys last week. And Islamabad said it was banning Bollywood films and all other Indian content from its television and radio.
The rising tensions among the two nuclear neighbours stoke fears of a potentially devastating military escalation over the bitterly disputed region.
Two of the three wars between India and Pakistan since partition and independence from Britain in 1947 have been fought over Kashmir.
The Line of Control, dividing the region, is guarded by the Indian and Pakistani armies.
The two countries have blamed each other for starting the recent gun fire. Tensions have run high since a September cross-border raid on an Indian army base killed 19 soldiers.
New Delhi in response said it had carried out "surgical strikes" against militants in the Pakistani-controlled part of Kashmir.
