Kashmir clash triggers past horrors

Locals bear brunt of unresolved conflict

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For 10 nights straight, gunfire between Indian and Pakistani soldiers has echoed from the mountains and deep valleys that form the heavily defended de facto border between the nuclear-armed rivals.

And, each night, it brings back afresh the horror for 50-year-old maize farmer Bashir Dar — the last time the bitter enemies battled across the Line of Control in contested Kashmir, his wife was killed.

"The mortar shell landed right next to my wife — she died instantly," said Mr Dar, describing fighting in 2020 near his mountain village of Balkote, on the Indian side of the dividing line.

His home lies less than a mile from Pakistani-controlled territory.

"These days, that moment flashes in my head all the time," the widower said, holding up a picture of his late wife.

"Every night, I sit huddled with my four children in one room — with an ear to the sounds of gunfire coming from the border."