Pakistan on Tuesday condemned what was described as the desecration of a mosque in Indian-administered Kashmir where a Muslim militant was killed by Indian troops.
"Desecration of a place of worship is a cause of deep outrage for people of all faiths," the foreign ministry said in a statement.
It added that Pakistan "holds the Indian occupation authorities responsible for this deliberate act of vandalism, which is an attack also on the religious heritage of the people of occupied Kashmir".
Indian forces on Monday killed a Muslim militant who had been barricaded inside the mosque in the the village of Panzan since Saturday.
Muslim separatists fighting to end New Delhi's rule in Kashmir regularly seek shelter in mosques when under attack from Indian security forces.
Pakistan claimed the raid on the mosque had involved heavy mortar shelling which had heavily damaged the building.
Kashmir is a Muslim-majority Himalayan state divided between India and Pakistan.
Islamabad on Monday claimed India had killed 22 Kashmiris on Saturday and burned 26 houses and said New Delhi's "state terrorism" in the region had increased in the wake of the September 11 attacks on New York and Washington.
India claims some 35,000 people have died since a Muslim rebellion erupted in its zone of Kashmir in 1989. Pakistan puts the number at more than 70,000.
Pakistan also says India has reneged on decades-old promises to hold a referendum to allow Kashmiris to decide their political future. India accuses Pakistan of training and supplying the rebels.
The 54-year-old row between the nuclear neighbours over Kashmir has taken on a new significance since Pakistan became a frontline state in the US-led war against terrorism by backing the military campaign in Afghanistan -- ISLAMABAD, (AFP)
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