Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has said that tensions with India can ease only if New Delhi backs down from its aggressive stance.
His remarks follow India’s launch of Operation Sindoor, which struck nine locations in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), targeting alleged terror hideouts.
Pakistan claims it responded with counter-offensive actions along the Line of Control (LoC).
Speaking to Bloomberg, Asif asserted that Pakistan holds the right to defend itself. He insisted that Islamabad was reacting to India’s actions and should not be seen as the aggressor.
“India has initiated this. If India is ready to back down, we will wrap up this tension,” Asif said.
“As long as we are under attack, under fire, we have to respond. We have to defend ourselves,” he further added.
Pakistan’s Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General, Lt General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, stated that India’s airstrikes killed at least 26 people and injured 46.
The strikes hit locations in PoK and Punjab province. Authorities have put Pakistan on ‘red alert’.
All domestic and international flights remain suspended for 24 to 36 hours. Government hospitals are on emergency standby.
Educational institutions in Islamabad and Punjab have shut. All forces are on standby following the strikes.
India reportedly targeted six locations inside Pakistan. These include Masjid SubhanAllah in Bahawalpur, believed to be the hideout of Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Maulana Masood Azhar.
Other targets included Muridke, the alleged base of Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jamaat ud Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed, as well as locations in Muzaffarabad, Kotli, and Bagh.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has called an emergency National Security Committee meeting at the Prime Minister’s House. He will address the nation on Wednesday afternoon.
The meeting aims to decide on a policy and consider interventions by global powers.
The United States has urged both nations to exercise restraint and de-escalate tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbours.
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