In a swift response, Indian armed forces on early Saturday carried out attacks on eight key Pakistani air bases in Rafiqui, Murid, Chaklala, Rahim Yar Khan, Sukkur, Chunian, Sialkot and Pasroor radar site. Indian Air Force fighter jets used air-launched precision weapons to inflict maximum damage but ensure minimum collateral damage to civilian population. Army Col. Sofiya Qureshi said, the Pakistani targets included “technical infrastructure, command and control centres, radar sites and weapon storage areas across the border.”
Earlier, Pakistan Air Force attacked 26 locations including Indian Air Force stations in Udhampur, Pathankot, Adampur and Bhuj, but these air bases sustained limited damage to equipment and personnel. Describing it as “a reckless move”, the spokesperson said, Pakistan targeted medicare centres and school premises located at IAF air bases in Srinagar, Awantipora and Udhampur. A high-speed missile launch was also attempted towards Punjab at 1:40 am, said Wing Commander Vyomika Singh.
The army spokesperson said, Pakistan intensified shelling along Line of Control and international border, targeting Kupwara, Baramulla, Poonch, Rajouri and Akhnoor. In Rajouri, Additional Deputy Commissioner Raj Kumar Thapa was killed and two of his assistants were critically injured when Pakistani shells fell on his official residence. Several civilians were injured in Pakistani attacks on Ferozepur and Jalandhar.
In Delhi, on Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was briefed by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, NSA Ajit Doval, and all three service chiefs. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke to Ajit Doval and Pakistani army chief Gen. Asim Munir on ways to de-escalate tensions immediately. India has made it clear that the onus of de-escalation falls first on Pakistan which initiated drone and missile attacks on Indian installations after India’s May 7 air strikes on terror hideouts inside PoK and Pakistan.
In Pakistan, the civilian leadership does not matter much. The onus is now fully on the Pakistani army chief Gen Munir. It is the Pakistani army chief who has to decide when to call off his drone and missile attacks and order a halt to artillery shelling in Jammu & Kashmir. The common people in Pakistan have seen through the fake information being spread by Pakistani army about inflicting losses on Indian army and air force, but on the ground, the situation is quite different. On Saturday, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri showed pictures of most of the Indian air force bases intact despite attacks by Pakistan’s kamikaze drones. The cat is now out of the bag. Even China on Saturday appealed to Pakistan to exercise restraint and de-escalate the situation. The ball lies squarely in Pakistan’s court and their army chief has to take the call. Pakistan stands completely isolated and it has not received any support from either the US or China or the Middle East countries.
Pakistan’s propaganda war : fake claims busted
In a swift response, the government of India has debunked all fake claims being made by Pakistani army about the ongoing missile and drone attacks. Pakistan on Saturday claimed that a female Indian Air Force pilot Squadron Leader Shivangi Singh has been captured in Kotli in PoK. This was immediately described as fake news by Press Information Bureau of the Govt of India. PIB Fact check immediately responded saying that no Indian female pilot has been captured and the news was fake. Pakistan army and government have been recycling old photos and videos as latest ones about so-called losses to Indian said. Pakistani social media handles are presently hper-active making false claims about Indian losses like Indian Rafale and Sukhoi jets being downed and Indian pilots being captured. Pakistani media has been circulating these falsehoods as gospel truth. Top Pakistani officials and even ministers are busy promoting unverified and doctored content on social media.
On Friday, Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri pointed out how Pakistan has been trying to give a communal hue to the ongoing attacks by alleging that India trying to target Gurdwara Nankana Sahib in Pakistan. Misri described this as “deranged fantasy”. He revealed that Pakistani troops shelled a gurdwara in Poonch and some local Sikhs lost their lives in the attacks. Similarly, Pakistani troops fired artillery on a Christian missionary school injuring several students.
Pakistan is fastly losing the battle on the ground with its air defence systems smashed by IAF. This is the reason why it is resorting to a barrage of misinformation to misguide people in India. We should all be careful when we find such claims on social media. Our first step should be to ignore all such posts and we should not circulate or forward these posts in any manner.