Pakistani, Indian troops trade fire

MUZAFFARABAD, PAKISTAN - Pakistani and Indian soldiers traded mortar and small arms fire from across the disputed border in Kashmir early Sunday, but there were no reports of casualties or damage, police said. <br> <br> Indian soldiers fired at Pakistani positions and civilian areas in the Samhani sector, located about 120 miles south of Muzaffarabad, the capital of Pakistani Kashmir, they said. <br> <br> Pakistani troops fired back. <br> <br> Both sides frequently clash in the disputed Himalayan region which is divided between them. <br> <br> Islamabad demands a vote in Kashmir to decide whether its residents want to stay with Hindu-dominated India or join Islamic Pakistan. <br> <br> India rejects the proposal in its only Muslim-majority state. <br> <br> Sunday&#39;s incident occurred at a time when tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbors remain high. <br> <br> India and Pakistan have massed hundreds of thousands of troops on their border since a Dec. 13 attack on the Indian Parliament, which India blamed on Pakistan-based Islamic militant groups and Pakistan&#39;s spy agency. Pakistan has denied involvement. <br> <br> The likelihood of war has decreased lately through diplomatic efforts by the United States and other Western nations.

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