India and Pakistan summon senior diplomats over border incident

Listen to the article. The audio text is automated, generated by an automated system

India and Pakistan summoned their respective senior diplomats on Saturday over a border incident that occurred on Friday, as New Delhi rejected Islamabad's accusation that Indian forces killed unarmed Pakistani civilians, stressing that those involved in the incident crossed the border illegally into Indian territory. The Pakistani Foreign Ministry stated earlier that members of the Indian Border Security Force used "unprovoked lethal force" against unarmed Pakistani civilians in the Bidian sector on the border yesterday, Friday.

“Pakistan categorically rejects any attempt to portray the two people who died as ‘infiltrators,’” the ministry said in a statement. Pakistan announced that it had summoned the Indian Charge d'Affairs to lodge a protest regarding the incident, and called for an "immediate, credible and transparent investigation." The Indian Foreign Ministry later rejected what it described as "baseless and motivated accusations" and said it had summoned the Charge d'Affaires of the Pakistan High Commission to protest "continuing to facilitate illegal cross-border infiltration from Pakistan." The ministry said that three people crossed into Indian territory in the Ferozepur sector of Punjab state and continued to advance towards the border fence despite repeated warnings from Indian border guard forces to return to Pakistan. The ministry added, "Indian border guard forces were forced to clash with them because they pose an imminent security threat." India said the incident reflects “a clear pattern of repeated cross-border movements by armed drug gangs operating from Pakistan,” and urged Islamabad to investigate what it described as cross-border infiltration and drug smuggling activities.

India urged Pakistan to respect international borders, adhere to bilateral arrangements and ensure that its forces prevent any unauthorized movements on its part. Relations between the two warring countries have been tense since the outbreak of a four-day war in 2025, the worst in decades, which was followed by an armed attack on tourists in the Indian part of Kashmir, killing 26 people. New Delhi accused Pakistan of supporting the attack, which Islamabad denied.