Pakistan's military have forced an Indian military helicopter down after it crossed into Pakistani territory, a spokesman in Islamabad says.
The four Indian army officers on board were taken into detention after the helicopter landed in the Skardu region of northern Pakistan.
There has been no word on the incident so far from the Indian side.
India and Pakistan have fought three wars since 1947, two of them over disputed Kashmir.
Pakistani officials say they are now investigating how the helicopter came to cross the Line of Control (LoC), the de facto border between the two countries.
"The helicopter had came deep into our airspace. It was forced to land. Four Indian army officers have been taken into safe custody. They are safe," Maj-Gen Athar Abbas told Reuters news agency.
He added that India had been informed of the incident.
There were regular clashes across the LoC before the nuclear-armed neighbours agreed to a ceasefire in 2003. They now exchange only sporadic fire and there have been just a handful of clashes in recent years.
Last February, the two countries resumed a formal peace process suspended after the 2008 attack on Mumbai (Bombay), in which gunmen killed 165 people. Delhi blamed the attack on Pakistan-based militants.
The two countries' foreign ministers met in Delhi in July and hailed what they said was a new era in ties, agreeing to fight militancy and boost trade and travel.
No comments:
Post a Comment