Pakistan's BAT behead Indian porter

Pakistan's Border Action Team is suspected to have decapitated a porter, who was among two civilians killed along the Line of Control (LoC) in Poonch district on Friday, and taken away the head, officials said here.

This is the first time that any civilian has been beheaded by the BAT, which comprises Pakistani army regulars and terrorists, though similar incidents involving security personnel have taken place in the past, they said.

The body of Mohammad Aslam (28) was badly mutilated and his head was missing, a senior police officer said.

A defence spokesman had earlier said that Aslam and Altaf Hussain (23), both residents of Kassalian village of Gulpur sector, were killed and three others injured after being hit by a mortar shell when Pakistani Army targeted a group of Army porters who were carrying logistics for the troops in a forward area close the LoC on Friday.

However, officials said on Saturday that the head of one of the porters was missing and is believed to have been taken away by the BAT.

He said the injured porters -- Mohamamd Saleem (24), Mohammad Showkat (28) and Nawaz Ahmad (35) -- are undergoing treatment in the hospital and their condition is stated to be "stable".

The opposition Congress strongly condemned the killings and questioned why Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh were "silent" on the "barbarism" by Pakistan.

In 2019, the highest number of ceasefire violations by Pakistani troops were recorded in the last 16 years, virtually making the 2003 India-Pakistan border truce "redundant", according to officials.