At least 20 Indian soldiers have been killed in clashes with Chinese forces in the disputed Himalayan border, Indian officials have said.
There was intense tension following the incident and it was the first deadly clash in at least 45 years in the border area.
The Indian Army said at the outset that three of its soldiers were killed and that both sides suffered casualties.
But later Tuesday, a number of seriously wounded soldiers died from their injuries, officials said.
The Foreign Ministry of India has accused China of violating an agreement last week to honor the Galvan Valley Actual Regulation Line (LIC).
BBC diplomatic correspondent James Robbins said the violence between the two armies in the Himalayas was so intense that the pressure on the two nuclear powers would escalate so that they would not fall into full-scale conflict.
What did the two sides say about the incident?
The Indian army said early Tuesday morning that three soldiers, including an officer, were killed in a clash in Ladakh in the disputed Kashmir region.
The following day, it issued a statement saying it had displaced both sides.
"17 Indian soldiers who were severely wounded on duty" and died of their injuries, "a total of 20 died".
China has not confirmed any casualties but accused China of crossing the border with India.
As reported by news agency AFP, China's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zhao Lijian on Monday said India had crossed the border twice, causing "heavy physical confrontation between troops on the border due to the provocation and attack of Chinese personnel." "
Both sides insisted that no shots were fired in four decades, and "no shots were fired" in this latest skirmish, the Indian Army said Tuesday.
How the skirmish associated with the exchange of fire proves fatal. It is rumored to have fought rocks and clubs
Local media outlets reported that Indian soldiers were "beaten and killed".
How stressful is the area?
LAC is poorly differentiated. The presence of rivers, lakes and snowshoes means line shifts can occur. Soldiers on either side - representing the two largest armies in the world - come face to face at many points.
But there have been fierce clashes on the border in recent weeks.
India alleges that China has dispatched tens of thousands of troops to the Ladakh Galvan valley, claiming that China has occupied 38,000 square kilometers (14,700 square miles) of its territory. Over the past three decades, many rounds of negotiations have failed to resolve border disputes.
When India suffered a humiliating defeat in 1962, the two countries had only fought one war so far.
In May, dozens of Indian and Chinese soldiers carried out a physical explosion near the border of the northeastern state of Sikkim. And in 2017, the two countries clashed in the region as China sought to expand its border crossing through the disputed plateau.
There are many reasons for tensions to rise now - but the strategic goals are rooted in competition and both sides blame each other.
According to experts, India is the most remote and insecure region with LIC in Ladakh. India's decision to boost infrastructure has brought Beijing's notoriety.
It increases Delhi’s ability to keep men and motherhood at bay when a road conflict occurs.
India disputes Pakistan with some part of the Himalayan ethnically diverse Kashmir, covering an area of 140,000 square kilometers.
The two nuclear-armed neighbors have a face-to-face history and a poorly drawn factual control line separates the two sides, overlapping territorial claims of more than 3,440 km (2,100 miles).
Patrolmen on the border often clash with each other, resulting in occasional fights. But no shots were fired in four decades.
After months of tension on Sunday night, the confrontation surprised many.
Whatever the outcome, the latest incident is expected to provoke a new wave of anti-China sentiment in India.
It also presents tough foreign policy and security challenges for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government, who are struggling to accelerate the Kovid-19 transitions and revive the recessionary economy.
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