SIALKOT: At least three children were killed Thursday when a mortar shell earlier fired by Indian forces from across the border exploded in Tughalpura village of Narowal district.

According to DawnNews, the children had found the previously undetonated shell last month after it landed in a field in the village close to Pakistan’s border with India.

Mistaking the shell for a toy, the children – 8-year-old Saira, 11-year-old Hunzala and 12-year-old Hafeez – had been playing with the mortar before it exploded in the field today.

Another 10-year-old child Azhar Ali, who was also injured in the explosion, was shifted to Sialkot’s Combined Military Hospital (CMH).

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif took notice of the incident and ordered the Punjab government and security agencies to investigate the matter.

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Last week, Pakistan lodged a protest with the Indian government after their forces shot dead an elderly civilian in Rawlakot sector.

At least 20 civilians have been killed and thousands on both sides of the Line of Control (LoC) and the Working Boundary have fled their homes since October 6, the beginning of some of the worst frontier shelling in years.

13 Pakistani civilians have been killed in the latest phase of the LoC violations that have virtually continued unabated since the start of October.