It was a home made with "love and care" that took 30 years to build but was severely damaged by the recent shelling on the northern border region of Pakistan.
Rubeena is one of the residents of Tattapani village in Pakistani-controlled Kashmir, located about three kilometres from the ‘line of control’ between Pakistan and India.
She claims that recent shelling from the Indian side of the border resulted in massive damage to her house.
“Today our house was destroyed by the shelling.”
“We were extremely scared. We were sitting in the room on the ground floor. When we came upstairs we found that our house was hit by a shell.
“It looked like our house was on fire. The situation was so overwhelming that I didn’t realise I walked over the broken window glass on the floor to help my kids and others move out of the house.
“My husband and I built this place, but it was destroyed within a minute.”
On the removal of article 370 in India and its effect in Pakistan Administrated Kashmir, she said that she doesn’t know what will happen to them but there is “fear.” Rubeena said that such shelling from the Indian side continues for about 4-5 hours and halts their daily lives.
“We are afraid. We simply don’t go out of the house [when shelling takes place].”
India recently removed Article 370 from its constitution that granted special status to the citizens of Indian-controlled Kashmir areas of Jammu and Kashmir.
The article allowed the Kashmir state to have its own constitution, independence over all matters except foreign affairs, communications and defence, and a separate flag.
In response, Pakistan expelled the Indian High Commissioner to Pakistan and halted the trade between the two countries.
Earlier this year, a suicide bomber attack killed 44 paramilitary troops in Pulwama district in Indian-administered-Kashmir resulting in an aerial strike by India in Pakistan’s northern area of Balakot. India claimed it destroyed a militant training centre; Pakistan denied the claim.
Rubeena’s neighbour Yasir Minhaas told SBS Urdu that the shelling intensified since the last few months even before the recent removal of Article 370 in India.
The house was severely damaged from cross-border shelling near LoC, Pakistan-administered Kashmir. Source: SBS
“Children are most affected by such actions and it affects them [not just physically but] mentally too.
The government does help but we only save our lives by staying in the house.”
Cross-border shelling has continued between Pakistan and India for several decades resulting in the loss of life on both sides.
The roof of the house damaged by the sharpnels of bomb. Source: SBS
