If Artillery fires from 10 km away, the round can be in the air for a minute.
The only things that can be
targetted are static objects.
Any movable object can only be hit by a Soviet style barrage or chance.
Unless the rounds are precision guided, expect a 155 mm round to have an initial precision
of 100 m, with a 30 m radius kill zone.
Precision can be improved if observers correct the next shell.
This means another minute will pass after the first hit.
If the buses are static and located near an Army post,
an attack is not a war crime according to the Geneva convention.
It is not considered to be targetting civilians.
Targetting civilians (As defined by the Geneva Convention) can only occur where military targets are absent.
My conclusion is that an act of war has been committed, but not neccessarily a war crime.
- It needs to be determined how far from the post the buses were when hit.
- Were they static for an extended period?
- Were they hit as a result of observers guiding fire on the buses?
- Were the buses clearly marked as civilian?
- Are Pakistan using civilian buses for military purposes?
Pakistan is of course entitled to attack Indian Army positions as a response,
but not to attack purely civilian targets.
Even if one party attacks purely civilian targets, the opposing party is not allowed to respond by the same.
