09:42 Won’t keep quiet to any act of terrorism, says India’s envoy to US :
India’s Ambassador to the United States, Harsh Vardhan Shringla, has said that India will not keep quiet to any act of terrorism and giving “appropriate response” to all terrorism incidents is the new normal for the country.
In a first-of-its-kind interaction with Indian students from the various universities from the Greater Washington area, Shringla said that Pakistan needs to meet its international obligations to crackdown on terrorist networks and safe havens within its territory.
Forty CRPF personnel were killed in a suicide attack by Pakistan-based JeM in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama district on February 14, sparking outrage in the country.
Following the attack, India bombed and destroyed JeM’s biggest training camp in Balakot in Pakistan’s restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, about 80-km from the Line of Control (LoC) early Tuesday, killing a “very large number” of terrorists, trainers and senior commanders.
Shringla updated the Indian students about the latest development back home and why India choose to act this way, after the Pulwama terrorist attack.
He said that Pakistan did not act against terrorist organisations or its leaders despite India giving actionable intelligence against the 26/11, Pathankot and Uri attacks.
“This time, India opted for pre-emptive attack, mainly because terrorists were planning to launch another terrorist attack inside India, he said referring to the daring air strike by Indian Air Force deep inside Pakistan.
“By doing so, India ensured that it was a non-military, and in remote area with no civilian casualties,” he said.
Shringla said that India has been successful in articulating its case with the international community including the US.
“The international community is with India,” he said.
Appreciating the strong support coming from United States, in particular from the White House, the State Department and the Congress, Shringla said this incident has brought the two countries together for counter-terrorism cooperation. — PTI
09:41 Air strikes will help BJP win over 22 LS seats in K’taka: Yeddyurappa:
Karnataka Bharatiya Janat Party chief BS Yeddyurappa on Wednesday said that India’s ‘preemptive’ strikes on terror camps in Pakistan have created a wave in favour of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and will help the party win over 22 of 28 seats in the state in the coming Lok Sabha polls.
“The atmosphere….day by day the wind is increasingly blowing in favour of the BJP. Yesterday’s (Tuesday’s) action of destroying terror hideouts by entering inside Pakistan has resulted in a pro-Modi wave in the country, the results of which can be seen in coming Lok Sabha polls,” Yeddyurappa said on Wednesday in Chitradurga.
“It has enthused youths; all this will help us in winning more than 22 Lok Sabha seats (in Karnataka),” said the former chief minister.
The BJP has 16 parliamentary seats in Karnataka, the Congress 10 and Janata Dal Secular 2.
Yeddyurappa’s comments may add fuel to the opposition’s allegation of “blatant politicisation” of the sacrifices of the armed forces by the “leaders of the ruling party (BJP).”
09:10 Pak violates ceasefire along along LoC :
Pakistan on Thursday violated ceasefire by resorting to unprovoked firing and heavy shelling of mortars in Krishna Ghati along the Line of Control in Poonch this morning.
Indian Army retaliated strongly and effectively.
The gun-battle which commenced at 6 am concluded after an hour.
On Wednesday, Pakistani Rangers violated ceasefire in Mendhar and Krishna Ghati sectors in the Rajouri district, to which the Indian Army gave a befitting reply.
Another incident of ceasefire violation was also reported on Wednesday in Kamalkot area of Uri sector in Baramulla district. — ANI
08:49 US, UK and France move UNSC to ban Masood Azhar:
The United States, the United Kingdom and France have moved a fresh proposal in the United Nations Security Council to designate Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar as a global terrorist, a listing that will subject him to global travel ban, asset freeze and arms embargo.
The fresh proposal was moved on Wednesday by the three permanent veto-wielding members of the 15-nation Security Council.
The Security Council Sanctions Committee will have 10 working days to consider the fresh proposal submitted by the three members. — PTI
08:24 Deny terrorists safe haven, block access to funds: US to Pak:
The United States has asked Pakistan to abide by its United Nations Security Council commitments to deny terrorists safe haven and block their access to funds.
This US statement came after India on Wednesday handed over to Pakistan a dossier on specific details”of involvement of the Jaish-e-Muhammed in the Pulwama terror attack on Central Reserve Police Force as also the presence of camps of the UN-proscribed terror outfit in that country.
Forty CRPF personnel were killed in a suicide attack by Pakistan-based JeM in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama district on February 14, sparking outrage in the country.
“Cross-border terrorism, such as the recent attack on India’s CRPF on February 14, poses a grave threat to the security of the region. We reiterate our call for Pakistan to abide by its United Nations Security Council commitments to deny terrorists safe haven and block their access to funds,” a State Department spokesperson said.
The ministry of external affairs handed over the dossier Pakistan’s acting high commissioner on Wednesday.
It was conveyed that India expects Pakistan to “take immediate and verifiable action” against terrorism emanating from territories under its control.
Responding to reporters questions over the current situation between India and Pakistan, the spokesperson joined the White House and the Pentagon in urging the two countries to de-escalate their tension and avoid military to resolve their differences. — PTI
00:49 Fathima Bhutto seeks release of captured Indian pilot:
Author Fatima Bhutto, the grand daughter of former Pakistan Prime Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, asked the Imran Khan government to release an Indian Air Force pilot captured after an air combat.
Pilot Abhinandan Varthaman was captured on Wednesday after he ejected safely from his MiG 21 Bison aircraft but landed across the Line of Control.
India has demanded immediate and safe return of the Wing Commander Varthaman, who was and was taken into custody by Pakistani army following a fierce engagement between air forces of the two sides along the Line of Control.
“I and many other young Pakistanis have called upon our country to release the captured Indian pilot as a gesture of our commitment to peace, humanity and dignity,” Bhutto, 36, wrote in an op-ed in the New York Times.
“We have spent a lifetime at war. I do not want to see Pakistani soldiers die. I do not want to see Indian soldiers die. We cannot be a subcontinent of orphans,” said Bhutto, a writer who is also niece of Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto.
“My generation of Pakistanis have fought for the right to speak, and we are not afraid to lend our voices to that most righteous cause: peace,” said daughter of Murtaza Bhutto, son of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto.
She said Pakistan’s recent history was bloody and no one has suffered more violence than its own citizens.
“But our long history with military dictatorships and experience of terrorism and uncertainty means that my generation of Pakistanis have no tolerance, no appetite, for jingoism or war,” she said.
Bhutto said like her, a large section of the population was against the escalation of tensions.
— PTI
00:13 Nobel winner Malala asks India and Pak to ‘sit down and settle conflict’:
Expressing her concern for people living along both sides of the border, Nobel Laureate and UN messenger of peace Malala Yousafzai urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Pakistani counterpart Imran Khan to show true leadership in this difficult time and settle long-standing Kashmir issue through dialogue.
In a statement which she posted on her Twitter feed, she said she was alarmed by the escalation of tensions between both the countries.
She said, “Everyone aware of the horrors of war would agree that retaliation and revenge is never the right response — once started, it rarely ends. Millions of people are suffering today because of existing wars — we don’t need another.”
The Nobel winner added, “I ask Prime Ministr of Pakistan Imran Khan and Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi to show true leadership in this difficult time: to sit down, shake hands and settle the current conflict and long-standing issue of Kashmir through dialogue.”
Source: Rediff