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Pakistan confirms counterattack in opposition to India has begun
Pakistan officers have confirmed its counterattack in opposition to India has began underneath the identify Operation Bunyan Ul Marsoos, which means “wall of lead” in Arabic.
As our newly up to date full report says, Pakistan’s retaliatory strikes – after accusing India of focusing on three of its army bases – are a serious escalation of the brewing battle between the 2 nuclear-armed neighbours.
Pakistan’s army spokesperson stated in a reside broadcast on state tv early on Saturday that India had focused Nur Khan base, Murid base and Shorkot base.
Shah Meer Baloch and Hannah Ellis-Petersen report that Nur Khan air base in Rawalpindi, the place the army has its headquarters, is about 10km from the Pakistani capital, Islamabad. Video shared on social media confirmed flames and smoke billowing into the night time sky.
The early morning strikes on Nur Khan in Rawalpindi, a densely populated space, induced mass panic, with residents working into the streets.
India’s tried strikes on Rawalpindi and different key army bases – and the launch of Pakistan’s counterattack on Saturday – marks the steepest escalation of their confrontation but, bringing the 2 international locations the closest they’ve been to conflict in many years.
See the total report right here:
Key occasions
Extra right here on the US secretary of state’s calls to high Indian and Pakistani diplomats amid the flaring battle – simply days after US vice-president JD Vance was reported as saying the US wouldn’t intervene and the preventing between the 2 international locations was “essentially none of our enterprise”.
Marco Rubio urged India and Pakistan to revive direct communication to “keep away from miscalculation” in a collection of calls, the state division stated early on Saturday.
Rubio positioned phone calls to the rivals’ international ministers and, for the primary recognized time for the reason that battle erupted, additionally spoke with Pakistan’s military chief, Col Asim Munir. thought-about the nation’s key powerbroker, Agence France-Presse experiences.
Within the separate calls with the highest diplomats, Rubio “emphasised that either side must determine strategies to de-escalate and re-establish direct communication to keep away from miscalculation”, state division spokeswoman Tammy Bruce stated.
Within the conversations with each international ministers and Asim Munir, Rubio additionally “provided US help in beginning constructive talks as a way to keep away from future conflicts”, Bruce stated.
The stepped-up diplomacy got here because the battle intensified between the nuclear-armed neighbours, with Pakistan launching counterattacks after India struck three of its air bases, in line with officers.
Pakistan airspace shut for twenty-four hours
Pakistan’s aviation authority says its airspace is to stay closed for the subsequent 24 hours, AFP simply reported.
Pakistan says it’s going to contemplate stopping if India does
Pakistan’s international minister has instructed native tv that if India stops right here then “we’ll contemplate to cease right here”, Reuters is reporting.
Ishaq Dar additionally stated he had instructed the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, that the ball was in India’s courtroom when it got here to de-escalation.
Rubio stated each events needed to discover methods to de-escalate and re-establish direct communication to keep away from miscalculation, the US state division stated.
The Indian army, in the meantime, reiterated a dedication to not escalate the battle offered that was reciprocated by the Pakistani army.
India stated restricted broken was sustained to tools and personnel at some Indian army bases that had been hit.
It additionally stated the declare that its missiles had struck Afghanistan had been false.
Pakistan boosting troop numbers on border, says India
Pakistan is growing its deployment of troops alongside the border, the Indian army stated on Saturday.
The Pakistani military has been noticed to be transferring its troops into ahead areas, “indicating offensive intent to additional escalate the state of affairs”, an Indian army spokesperson instructed the media briefing in New Delhi.
“Indian armed forces stay in a excessive state of operational readiness,” Reuters quoted her as saying.
Indian armed forces reiterate their dedication to non-escalation, offered it’s reciprocated by the Pakistan army.
The Indian army has stated at a media convention it focused Pakistani army bases after Islamabad fired a number of high-speed missiles at a number of Indian air bases within the nation’s Punjab state early on Saturday.
Indian colonel Sofiya Qureshi stated in New Delhi simply now that Pakistan additionally focused well being services and colleges at its three air bases in Indian-controlled Kashmir.
“Befitting reply has been given to Pakistani actions,” she stated.
The Pakistani military’s actions had been “provocation” and India’s response was “measured”, stated international secretary Vikram Misri, cited by the Related Press.
Pakistani defence minister denies assembly over nuclear weapons deliberate
Pakistan’s defence minister, Khawaja Asif, has instructed ARY TV that no assembly of the Nationwide Command Authority is scheduled.
It was reported earlier that Pakistan’s prime minister had convened a gathering of the authority, the principle physique that makes selections on the management, command and operations of Pakistan’s nuclear weapons.
Asif additionally stated the USA was the one nation that might play an efficient position between Pakistan and India.
Indian army provides media briefing
India’s army claims Pakistan has focused medical and academic services in Indian-administered Kashmir in addition to utilizing a missile to focus on an airbase in Punjab.
It additionally stated Pakistan tried air intrusions in 26 places, Reuters experiences.
The Indian army stated it responded by focusing on radar techniques and technical bases in Pakistan.
Extra on Beijing’s name for India and Pakistan to keep away from escalating their battle: a Chinese language international ministry spokesperson stated in a press release cited by AFP:
We strongly name on each India and Pakistan to provide precedence to peace and stability, stay calm and restrained, return to the monitor of political settlement by means of peaceable means and keep away from taking actions that additional escalate tensions.
The newest India-Pakistan preventing was triggered by an assault on the Indian-run facet of Kashmir that killed 26 vacationers and which Delhi blamed on Pakistan, additionally accusing the Lashkar-e-Taiba group of involvement.
However what precisely is Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and what’s its relationship with Islamabad?
Peter Beaumont describes on this explainer how it’s a long-established Islamic salafist militant group based in Pakistan and designated as a terrorist group by many international locations. Its 2008 assault on Mumbai killed 166 individuals, together with plenty of international nationals.
The UN safety council says LeT has performed “quite a few terrorist operations” in opposition to army and civilian targets since 1993, together with assaults on Mumbai commuter trains in July 2006 and a December 2001 assault on India’s parliament.
The group has targeted a lot of its militant exercise within the disputed Himalayan territory of Kashmir, largely due to its proximity to India, however LeT has a broader hostility to India.
The complete explainer is right here:
China has “strongly” urged India and Pakistan to keep away from escalating their battle, AFP is reporting.
Residents have been taking shelter amid artillery shelling in a single day in Poonch district, in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir.
5 individuals have been killed in Pakistani assaults in India’s Jammu area on Saturday morning, in line with police in India-administered Kashmir, cited by Reuters.