India says carried out air strike on 'terror camps' inside Pakistan

[webfact]

India says carried out air strike on 'terror camps' inside Pakistan

By Drazen Jorgic and Sanjeev Miglani

 

India's Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale speaks during a media briefing in New Delhi, India, February 26, 2019. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi

 

ISLAMABAD/NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Indian jets crossed into Pakistani territory on Tuesday, conducting what one minister said was an air strike on "terror camps", dramatically escalating tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbours who have fought three wars against each other.

 

The confrontation follows a growing rift between the arch-foes since a Feb. 14 suicide bombing in the disputed Kashmir region, claimed by a Pakistani-based militant group, killed at least 40 Indian paramilitary police. New Delhi blamed Islamabad, which denies having a role in the attack.

 

Pakistan downplayed Tuesday's incident, saying there were no casualties and that Indian jets "released a payload" hastily in a forest area after crossing Kashmir's Line of Control (LoC), which acts as a de facto border between the two countries.

 

"Air Force carried out aerial strike early morning today at terror camps across the LoC (Line of Control) and Completely destroyed it," India's minister of state for agriculture, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, said on Twitter.

 

Pakistan's military confirmed Indian aircraft violated its airspace but said "no infrastructure got hit".

 

"Indian aircrafts intruded from Muzafarabad sector," Pakistani military spokesman Major General Asif Ghafoor said on Twitter early on Tuesday, referring to an area in the Pakistan-administered part of Kashmir.

 

Ghafoor said "facing timely and effective response from Pakistan Air Force", the Indian aircraft "released payload in haste while escaping which fell near Balakot. No casualties or damage".

 

Ghafoor, saying that more information would be released, tweeted four pictures of the alleged site where Indian aircraft dropped a payload near Balakot, purportedly showing a bomb crater in a forest area but no serious damage.

 

Balakot, a town in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in Pakistan, is about 50 km (30 miles) from the Line of Control (LoC) in Kashmir, which was the cause of two of the three wars India and Pakistan have fought since the end of British colonial rule in 1947.

 

Analysts have alleged Pakistani militants have their training camps in the area, although Pakistan has always denied the presence of any such camps.

 

RARE STRIKES

Indian markets fell on Tuesday amid concerns over increased tensions with Pakistan. The rupee fell to 71.16 to the dollar compared with Monday's close of 70.9850.

 

The 10-year benchmark bond yield rose to 7.61 percent compared with 7.58 percent on Monday, while the broader NSE stock index declined 1.17 percent.

 

Shelling across the Kashmiri Line of Control has occurred frequently over the past few years but airspace violations by jets are extremely rare.

 

New Delhi said in 2016, following another large attack on Indian security forces in Kashmir, its troops crossed the LoC and carried out a "surgical strike" on suspected militant camps in Pakistan Kashmir. Islamabad denied anything serious occurred.

 

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, facing a tight election in the next couple of months, has vowed a strong response to the Feb. 14 attack in the Pulwama district of Kashmir, the deadliest single assault on Indian forces in 30 years of insurgency in the Muslim-majority region.

 

The attack was claimed by Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), prompting India to accuse Pakistan of harbouring the militant group. Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan denied his country was involved and offered to help investigate the attack if any credible evidence was provided.

 

JeM had also previously caused a crisis between India and Pakistan over a raid on the Indian parliament in 2001.

 

Indian television channels quoted unidentified government sources as saying multiple targets were destroyed during the air raid into Pakistan involving a dozen Mirage aircraft.

 

CNN News18 said it was a major strike involving 1,000 lb bombs and that the number of militants killed could be as high as 200. It did not say from where it got its information. The defence ministry reiterated it had no information.

 

"It's a fitting reply to the horror we witnessed in Pulwama," said former Indian air chief Pradeep Vasant.

 

"It's an airborne surgical strike, we have upped the ante," he said.

 

Mohammed Iqbal, a resident of Mendhar in India's side of Kashmir, said there had been jets flying all night.

 

(Additional reporting by Asif Shahzad; Writnig by Drazen Jorgic; Editing by Michael Perry and Paul Tait)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2019-02-26

[tifino]

 

[Dumbastheycome]

" Upped the  ante". 

Where / how does that  that settle the problem?

Dangerous  games!

[Baerboxer]

21 hours ago, tifino said:

 

 

Only Muslim radical Pakistan and India lead by extreme Hindus seeking re-election both happen to be nuclear armed.

[lopburi3]

So far 2 Indian jets are downed today.  

https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/south-asia/indian-fighter-jets-intercept-pakistani-planes-in-kashmir

[malagateddy]

Personally speaking..I hope India shows pakistan the error of their ways

Sent from my SM-G7102 using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[Prissana Pescud]

Apparently, one Indian Mirage plane and one Pakistan "Russian?" plane have been shot down.

Just before an election in India. The pot is starting to be stirred 

[Prissana Pescud]

7 hours ago, lopburi3 said:

So far 2 Indian jets are downed today.  

https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/south-asia/indian-fighter-jets-intercept-pakistani-planes-in-kashmir

not yet confirmed, one each is the latest score if you want to keep a tally in this "up the ante" conflict.

There will be no resolution until the Kashmir issue is resolved.

But I could say the same thing about Palestine, Ukraine, Ireland, ad infinitum

[zydeco]

Which direction will the wind carry the nuclear fallout? Hope it goes towards the Pakistan-Iran border and not eastward.

[lopburi3]

Recall being in Dacca (Dhaka) in 71 when Indian jets were bombing and shooting Pakistan's jets out of the air over the city, with the East Pakistanis cheering the Indians.  Very unreal.  

 

Hopefully this round will be contained quickly.

[Spidey]

India claims to have bombed terror camps in Pakistan - B.S. says Pakistan.

 

Pakistan claims to have downed 2 Indian 'planes. -B.S. says India.

 

I wonder where Thais get their "Thainess" from?

[Prissana Pescud]

11 hours ago, Spidey said:

India claims to have bombed terror camps in Pakistan - B.S. says Pakistan.

 

Pakistan claims to have downed 2 Indian 'planes. -B.S. says India.

 

I wonder where Thais get their "Thainess" from?

I doubt that they got it from Pakistan, rather when Pakistan always used to be called India prior to partition.

Indian "Brahmans" established the empires around Siem Riep and had a great deal of influence in what are now

the countries or Thailand, Cambodia, southern Vietnam and Laos.

India is the worlds largest democracy. And it is the leader of all the unaligned countries. 

[JemJem]

My guess is that Pakistan will get away with this horrific terror act. I don't even see them handing over the terror group's head to India.

[Lucius verus]

Nothing to see here.

The only people who are more corrupt and useless than  Pakistan are Indian and Thai military.

Both the hot curry eaters Nukes will fizzle out like a cheap Chinese firecracker so they won't use them.

Failed states of the defunct  British empire. These incidents happen regularly.

Nothing to see or worry about. 

[Dumbastheycome]

On 2/28/2019 at 6:06 AM, Prissana Pescud said:

not yet confirmed, one each is the latest score if you want to keep a tally in this "up the ante" conflict.

There will be no resolution until the Kashmir issue is resolved.

But I could say the same thing about Palestine, Ukraine, Ireland, ad infinitum

Valid comment. Sadly there  are  those  who view the pathetic assumptions  of ideology religiopolitically as some justification of  supremist right of infliction.

More pathetic is their same appeal for support to those in the  global spectrum that they at times  would also willingly and forcefully inflict the same ideollogy.

Hypocrisy as a shield.

I say screw  em ! Non partisan beyond ....screw  em !

Why is  humanity so  inhumane?