Indian and Chinese troops fought each other with iron rods and stones at their disputed border, resulting in casualties on both sides including the deaths of three Indian soldiers, Indian officials said on Tuesday, in a major escalation of a weeks-old standoff.
NEW DELHI/BEIJING (Reuters) – Indian and Chinese troops fought each other with iron rods and stones at their disputed border, resulting in casualties on both sides including the deaths of three Indian soldiers, Indian officials said on Tuesday, in a major escalation of a weeks-old standoff.
China blamed India for the fight in the snow deserts of Ladakh in the western Himalayas on Monday and the editor of the government-controlled Global Times also said the Chinese military had suffered casualties.
The deaths were the first since the last major border clash in 1967 between the nuclear-armed Asian giants and world’s two most populous countries who have not been able to settle the dispute along their vast frontier.
Since early May, hundreds of soldiers have faced off against each other at three locations, including along the banks of the Pangong Tso lake, each side accusing the other of trespassing.
On Monday night, a small group of soldiers came to blows in the Galwan Valley, Indian officials said, but it was not clear what had provoked them.
“During the de-escalation process under way in the Galwan Valley, a violent face-off took place yesterday night with casualties on both sides,” the Indian army said in a statement.
