Border tensions: Amid fresh India fire, army warns against provocation
The statement from DG ISPR came a day after India warns Pakistan of more ‘pain’ in Kashmir
ISLAMABAD:
The Pakistan Army said on Wednesday that it wanted ‘peace’ with India but would effectively respond to any provocation from across the Line of Control (LoC) and Working Boundary, as the two armies again exchanged fire near Sialkot.
“We are desirous of peace but will retaliate if Indian forces violate the ceasefire,” the chief military spokesperson Major-General Asim Saleem Bajwa told reporters in Bannu after a friendly cricket match at the IDP camp there. Pakistan’s T20 captain Shahid Afridi also participated in the exhibition match.
The statement from the director general of the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) came a day after Indian Defence Minister Arun Jaitley warned Pakistan of more “pain” if it continued to violate a ceasefire on their disputed border in Kashmir and said it was up to Islamabad to create the conditions for a resumption of peace talks.
“Our conventional strength is far more than theirs. So if they persist with this, they’ll feel the pain of this adventurism,” Jaitley told NDTV in an interview.
The two sides exchanged mortars and intense gunfire this month, killing at least 20 civilians and wounding dozens in the worst violation to date of a 2003 ceasefire.
It was not clear what actually instigated the latest tensions, as both sides accused each other of starting the hostilities.
The Pakistan Army on Wednesday again accused India of resorting to ‘unprovoked’ firing in villages near Charwa sector in Sialkot. The ISPR said the Indian troops targeted the civilian population. However, there was no loss of life reported in the latest skirmishes.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 23rd, 2014.
The Pakistan Army said on Wednesday that it wanted ‘peace’ with India but would effectively respond to any provocation from across the Line of Control (LoC) and Working Boundary, as the two armies again exchanged fire near Sialkot.
“We are desirous of peace but will retaliate if Indian forces violate the ceasefire,” the chief military spokesperson Major-General Asim Saleem Bajwa told reporters in Bannu after a friendly cricket match at the IDP camp there. Pakistan’s T20 captain Shahid Afridi also participated in the exhibition match.
The statement from the director general of the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) came a day after Indian Defence Minister Arun Jaitley warned Pakistan of more “pain” if it continued to violate a ceasefire on their disputed border in Kashmir and said it was up to Islamabad to create the conditions for a resumption of peace talks.
“Our conventional strength is far more than theirs. So if they persist with this, they’ll feel the pain of this adventurism,” Jaitley told NDTV in an interview.
The two sides exchanged mortars and intense gunfire this month, killing at least 20 civilians and wounding dozens in the worst violation to date of a 2003 ceasefire.
It was not clear what actually instigated the latest tensions, as both sides accused each other of starting the hostilities.
The Pakistan Army on Wednesday again accused India of resorting to ‘unprovoked’ firing in villages near Charwa sector in Sialkot. The ISPR said the Indian troops targeted the civilian population. However, there was no loss of life reported in the latest skirmishes.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 23rd, 2014.