Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif vowed to retaliate after cross-border strikes that targeted nine terror facilities in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).
In an address to the nation on Wednesday, Sharif accused India of launching a direct assault on Pakistan’s sovereignty and declared that retaliation is inevitable. “We resolve that we will avenge the blood of our innocent martyrs,” Al Jazeera quoted Sharif.
Sharif also claimed to have shot down 5 fighter jets. However, Indian officials haven’t issued any details in this regard.
SHARIF VOWS JAW-BREAKING RESPONSE
“Last night, we showed that Pakistan can deliver a jaw-breaking response for its defence. At the Line of Control, the dogfight raged for about an hour. Pakistani pilots remained in their airspace, the enemy’s planes were shattered to pieces,” he claimed. “In conventional warfare last night, we proved that Pakistan prevailed.”
Sharif said the disputed Kashmir remains unresolved under international law. “As per international law, Jammu and Kashmir is a disputed territory and will remain until a plebiscite is done,” he said.
He rejected India’s recent unilateral actions in the region, stating, “Regardless of how many unilateral decisions India takes, it cannot change the reality.”
OPERATION SINDOOR: INDIA’S BIGGEST STRIKE INSIDE PAKISTAN
India carried out ‘Operation Sindoor,’ its most expansive cross-border strikes since Balakot, targeting nine terror facilities in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) early on Wednesday in response to the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam that killed 26 civilians.
According to sources, the strikes killed over 80 terrorists affiliated with banned terror groups, including Jaish-e-Mohammed, Lashkar-e-Taiba, and Hizbul Mujahideen.
In the hours following the Indian operation, Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, spokesperson for Pakistan’s armed forces, said that the strikes had killed 31 civilians and wounded dozens more. “Any condemnation of India’s strikes is not enough,” he told Dawn newspaper.
Meanwhile, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, speaking to CNN, labelled the Indian operation an “invitation to expand the conflict.”
According to a CNN report citing a Pakistani military official, India deployed dozens of warplanes during the strike. Sharif confirmed these details in a speech to Parliament.
Sharif praised Pakistan’s military readiness in the face of what he described as an “act of war,” saying, “Our air force was also prepared.”
“A few days ago, India was proudly showing off its purchase of Rafale jets. But one shouldn’t be too proud,” Sharif added. “These jets flew from there in combat form, but our air force was also prepared.”
The Prime Minister’s office of Pakistan said the armed forces had been “authorised to undertake corresponding actions in this regard.”
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