ISLAMABAD: Pakistani media today generally supported the government’s stand that India’s surgical strikes across the LoC were a “drama” to “placate the local sentiments” after the Uri terror attack.
All the major newspapers gave front-page coverage to the “routine LoC firing incident” and also warned that any escalation will not be good for regional peace and security.
Leading newspaper Dawn reported that Pakistan-India crisis over Kashmir dangerously escalated after Indian forces fired across the Line of Control (LoC) in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), killing at least two Pakistan Army soldiers while calling it “surgical strikes” against terror launch pads.
“The claim was immediately dismissed by Pakistan, which said India mischaracterized cross-LoC firing as surgical strikes and made it clear that any such attempt would be responded strongly,” it said.
Under a lead report headlined “‘Surgical’ farce blows up in India’s face”, Karachi-based ‘The Express Tribune’ said: “The Narendra Modi administration staged a drama on Thursday to placate a media-induced public frenzy following the Uri attack,” it said.
The paper also said the Indian military claimed that it had carried out ‘surgical strikes’ against perceived ‘terrorist launch pads’ in the PoK.
“But the Pakistani military ripped to shreds the Indian farcical claim as an ‘illusion being deliberately generated by the Indians to create false effects’,” it said.
The News International, which has wide circulation, reported that yesterday morning saw claims by India of carrying out surgical strikes inside Pakistan, with the latter dismissing it as just firing across the LoC.
“Pakistan strongly condemned this unprovoked ceasefire violations by the Indian forces which, it said, was continuation of a pattern of ceasefire violations committed by the Indian forces,” it reported.
Right-leaning ‘The Nation’ reported that India failed to sell the idea of surgical strikes.
“Rubbishing the Indian military’s claim of carrying out a ‘surgical strike’ in PoK, Pakistan Army made it clear that it will respond strongly to any misadventure,” it said in the front-page lead.
It quoted the army that Indian troops committed a ceasefire violation by resorting to “unprovoked firing” at some border points, which was responded effectively.
Urdu paper and television also carried similar stories and rejected Indian claim of surgical strikes.
India carried out surgical strikes on seven terror launch pads across the LoC on the intervening night of September 28 and 29, with the Army saying it had inflicted “significant casualties” on terrorists preparing to infiltrate from PoK, days after Modi warned Uri attack would not go unpunished. –PTI
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