Lower thirds:

00:02 Report by Shalu Yadav & Richard Kujur
00:26 Mohammad Ashraf | Local resident
00:54 Japneet Kaur | Victim’s daughter
01:40 Shalu Yadav | DW Correspondent
03:16 Japneet Kaur | Victim’s daughter

SCRIPT:
Opens with visuals of Mohd Ashraf entering his house that was hit by shells
 
VO:  Mohammad Ashraf fled his house with his family -  just minutes before it was hit by a shell which he said came from across the border.
 
Visuals of Mohd ashraf picking up the pieces in his room
 
VO: A week on, picking up pieces of what is left, he’s grateful that it was only material things that were destroyed - when the war came to their home - in the border town of Poonch…
 
0:25 CLIP Mohammad Ashraf, Local resident:
I have never seen such attacks in my life. There was shelling all around us… Our children were very scared and hugged me crying for help. I am so grateful we are alive. Everything else can be rebuilt, but a lost family member can never be brought back.
 
Visuals of Japneet Kaur with her father’s photo in her hands
 
VO: That’s the reality facing  17-year-old Japneet Kaur. Her father Amreek Singh was killed by shrapnel while moving the family to the ground floor for safety.

0:53 CLIP Japneet Kaur, Victim’s daughter 
We ran downstairs to our shop for safety. My father closed the shutters after getting us safely there. Just as he was going upstairs, a shell hit the street. There was so much smoke inside, we couldn't see anything. One minute your father is trying to save you and the next minute he is gone and you find yourself carrying out his body. 
 
Strong visuals of more destruction in Poonch

VO: These destroyed buildings were homes, now deserted. Inside, the scattered belongings bear testimony to the horror and panic that gripped the town - as they were pounded by shells.

PTC Shalu Yadav, DW Correspondent - The family that used to live here we are told, was lucky enough to survive. It’s almost unbelievable, but they did survive, and they’ve survived some injuries, they’re being treated in a hospital. Soon after this attack, they left for their safety.
From the kitchen window, I can see the mountains, that’s the mountainous line of control, the border between India and Pakistan. And that is the side from where we’re told the shell landed and blasted through this house, causing this devastation. It’s not just this house, there are many houses in this locality which are a scene of devastation exactly like this. We’re told 80 percent of the people who used to live in this town left for their safety when tensions escalated between India and Pakistan. 

Visuals from agency showing the attacks on each other by India and Pakistan

VO: That escalation was triggered by an attack on tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir’s Pahalgam. 26 men were killed - 25 of them Hindus. India carried out strikes in Pakistan, saying it had harboured the terror organisation responsible. And Pakistan responded. Fears grew of a full-scale war. But a ceasefire stopped the fighting after four days.

ATMO of women reciting prayers 

VO: As people here mourn their dead, they’re asking their government if it was worth it. 

3:10 CLIP Japneet Kaur, Victim’s daughter – 
The Government says terrorists will be eliminated after such operations. But can they really assure us that there won't be any terrorism now?
If you look at the impact of this operation, it’s us who bear the brunt. 26 lives were lost in the militant attack, but if hostilities continue, thousands more will die. 

Visuals of women reciting prayers 

VO: The people caught between India and Pakistan can only pray the ceasefire holds, and hope for a lasting peace. 

END