Amid reports of Pakistani soldiers being killed in cross-border firing along the LoC in Jammu and Kashmir, the Pakistani media speculates that India could be planning another surgical strike.
Tensions have remained high between the two countries since the beginning of the year with India accusing Pakistan of repeatedly violating the ceasefire agreement it had signed in 1999.
Cross-Border Firings
Since January 2020, the Pakistani side has carried out more than 3200 ceasefire violations across the Indian border in Jammu and Kashmir region, killing 30 civilians and injuring over 100 others, India claims.
The cross-border shelling has brought daily life to a standstill in the villages near the Line of Control (LoC), the de facto border, with residents preferring to remain indoors to avoid any casualty.
According to defense sources, the Indian Army carried out an overnight retaliatory firing in the Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir on December 10, killing 5 Pakistani soldiers and injured three others.
The cross-border firing is stated to have lasted for two hours, with sources stating, that Pakistan initiated “unprovoked firing and shelling targeting civilian facilities in Mankote sector of the LoC in Poonch district on Thursday”.
“This necessitated befitting retaliatory action by the Indian army in which five Pakistani soldiers were killed and three injured. Several of their bunkers have also been destroyed,” the sources added.
Surgical Strikes 2.0
Meanwhile, in the light of the tense situation on the border, the Pakistani media has started speculating that India might be preparing for another surgical strike.
According to Karachi-based news outlet, Dawn, Pakistan has put its troops on ‘high alert’ after its intelligence agencies learned that India is looking to mount a surgical strike on the Islamic nation.
Dawn claims that India is planning a “False Flag Operation” against Pakistan to divert the world’s attention from a host of its “internal issues”, including the ongoing farmers’ protest near New Delhi.
The protests are said to be a result of controversial reforms to deregulate the Indian agriculture sector with Sikh farmers from Indian Punjab expressing their concern over it undermining, disenfranchising, and subjugating the farmers within the nation.
However, according to reports, Pakistan wishes to foil any attempts made by India to carry out an attack similar to the “2016 Surgical Strike”. On September 29, 2016, India claimed it had carried out a surgical strike on terror launch pads in Pakistan-administered Kashmir across the LoC, inflicting “significant casualties”.
This was believed to be in retaliation for the killing of 19 Indian soldiers by suspected Pakistani terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir’s Uri on September 18, 2016.
Citing highly credible sources, Pakistani media outlet Tribune on Friday reported that the Pakistani forces have been clearly instructed to respond to any ‘misadventure’ from India.
Meanwhile, according to military sources, the Indian side has rubbished all such claims by stating that they have no plans for another surgical strike, indicating that the reports are a part of Pakistan’s propaganda.
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