Tensions between India and Pakistan, both of which possess nuclear weapons, have risen to a fever pitch after India, retaliating for the Jaish-e-Muhammad attack on a CRPF convoy in Pulwama that killed 40 soldiers, launched a strike on a terrorist camp in Pakistan on Tuesday. The leaders of various political Indian political parties congratulated the Air Force for its strike, which was the first cross-border air strike in roughly 50 years. The last came in 1971.
Sushma Swaraj, a senior leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party, stated, “I am happy that all parties in one voice praised the security forces and supported the government’s anti-terror operation.”
On Wednesday, Pakistan said its air force carried out strikes into India-controlled territory to show its “right, will and capability for self defense.” Pakistan also claimed it had shot down two Indian jets. Major General Asif Ghafoor, a spokesman for the Pakistan armed forces, said Pakistan had captured two Indian pilots. Raveesh Kumar, a spokesman for India’s foreign ministry, said one pilot was missing. CNBC reported:
The Pakistan government’s official Twitter account released a video of what it claimed was one of the Indian pilots who had been shot down. The man, whose face is bloodied and blindfolded, gives his name and service number, before telling a man questioning him: “I’m sorry, sir, that’s all I’m supposed to tell you.”
Dhruva Jaishankar, a fellow in foreign policy studies at Brookings India, pointed out that in the last 30 years there have been numerous terrorist attacks on India from Pakistani-area groups.
By 10 a.m. EST Wednesday morning, a red alert had been sounded across the Delhi metro network; a senior DMRC official stated, “As advised by security agencies, a red alert has been imposed on the entire DMRC network from 6 pm onwards.”
Arun Jaitley, the current Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs of the Government of India, said on Wednesday, “I remember when U.S. Navy Seals (commandos) went to Abbottabad to kill Osama bin Laden, then why can’t India? This used to be only an imagination, a wish, a frustration and disappointment. But it’s possible today,”
NDTV noted, “The biggest training camp of the Jaish in Balakot that Indian Mirage 2000 fighter jets bombed in a pre-dawn attack on Tuesday was just 60 km from Abbottabad, where Al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden was found hiding in a discreet bungalow before he was shot dead by US Navy Seal commandos in 2011. The Pakistani Military Academy or PMA Kakul, which trains top officers of Pakistan’s armed forces, is also located in Abbottabad.”
Tajinder Pal Singh Bagg, the spokesperson of the Delhi Unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party, tweeted, “Pakistan wants India to stop. Terrorists want India to stop. This is a new India that will not stop come what may. India destroyed hundreds of terrorists and we are proud of it.” He added, “Anyone wanting PM to stop his programs is not India’s well-wished. He did not stop after Uri, nor Pulwama. He did not even stop on the day of surgical strikes and air strikes. The same people did not even comment on opposition meeting and condemning government at such a time!”