Rescue teams recovered the body of a 19-year-old woman from across the Line of Control (LoC) in Indian-administered Kashmir on Wednesday. The woman, identified as Nousheen, had reportedly fallen into the Neelum River in Azad Jammu and Kashmir two days earlier. Pakistani and Indian forces coordinated to retrieve her body.
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According to District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) Neelum official M. Akhtar Ayub, Nousheen fell into the river between Lawat and Nagdar at around 7am on Monday. Authorities spotted her body on the opposite bank around 9am. However, it disappeared from view shortly afterwards, prompting search efforts on Monday and Tuesday.
Rescuers spotted the body again near Keran on the other side of the LoC at around 9am on Wednesday. The Pakistan Army’s Keran unit contacted Indian forces to coordinate the recovery. Initial efforts involving a local swimmer failed because of the river’s strong current.
Authorities subsequently arranged rescue boats and launched a formal operation at around 11am. After approximately one hour, rescuers recovered the body at noon. The DDMA Neelum team then handed it over to the woman’s family.
Personnel from the Pakistan Army, police, Kashmir Boating Club Sharda and local residents participated in the operation. Ayub stressed the need to establish a dedicated water rescue unit in Neelum district. He said trained personnel and appropriate equipment were essential for responding effectively to similar emergencies.
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Meanwhile, the Lawat police station’s station house officer said initial information had not indicated a domestic dispute behind the incident. The family reportedly mentioned a possible mental health concern, but authorities had not received medical confirmation. Officials have not established a confirmed explanation for the incident in the information provided.