Three civilians were killed overnight in Pakistan shelling along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch district, officials said on Saturday.

Police said three members of a family including father, mother and son were killed when their house was hit by a shell fired by Pakistan Army in Khari Karmara sector of the LoC in Poonch district on Friday evening.

A Defence Ministry spokesman said at around 7.20 pm on Friday, Pakistan Army initiated unprovoked ceasefire violation along the LoC in Gulpur sector by firing with small arms and shelling with mortars.

“Pakistan also resorted to heavy unprovoked shelling in Khari Karmara sector. Indian Army gave befitting response to Pakistan ceasefire violation,” the spokesman said.

The ceasefire violation comes even as Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday reviewed the overall security situation in Jammu and Kashmir at a high-level meeting in Srinagar.

Singh, accompanied by Chief of Defence Staff Gen Bipin Rawat, Army Chief Gen MM Naravane, arrived here in the afternoon following a visit to eastern Ladakh.

Besides Gen Rawat and Gen Naravane, the meeting was attended by Jammu and Kashmir Lt Governor GC Murmu, Corps Commander of the Chinar Corps Lt Gen BS Raju and Director General of Police Dilbagh Singh, the officials said.

The senior security officials apprised the defence minister about the situation along the Line of Control with Pakistan as well as on anti-terror operations.

Pakistan has made over 2,400 ceasefire violations on the LoC and the international border in Jammu and Kashmir since January this year.

Frequent shelling by Pakistan has thrown lives of hundreds of border residents in Jammu and Kashmir out of gear.

Fourteen Indians were killed and 88 sustained injuries in more than 2,432 incidents of unprovoked ceasefire violations carried out by Pakistan forces till June, according to official data.

Earlier this month, India had lodged a strong protest with Pakistan over ceasefire violations by Pakistani forces along the LoC and the international border, which officials said are primarily to push terrorists into Jammu and Kashmir.

India has been maintaining that the unprovoked ceasefire violations are in contravention to the 2003 ceasefire understanding between the two countries.

Meanwhile, three terrorists were killed in an encounter at Amshipora area of Jammu and Kashmir’s Shopian district early today morning.