Daily Times

Pakistan on Tuesday strongly rebutted a statement of the Indian army chief alleging reactivation of terror camp in Balakot and termed it a ‘desperate attempt to divert international attention from the humanitarian nightmare in Indian-held Kashmir’.

Responding to a query, Foreign office Spokesman Dr Faisal emphasised that with its allegations of infiltration from Pakistan, India will not be able to succeed in misleading the world community through these diversionary tactics and hide its unabated state-terrorism in the occupied valley. The spokesman drew attention to the fact that in 2019, Indian ceasefire violations have caused huge human toll resulting in martyrdom of 26 innocent civilians and injuries to 124 others.

“The insincerity and lack of credibility of Indian statements is further exposed by the fact that India severely hinders the functioning of the UNMOGIP and limits the free and unhampered mobility of its personnel, which is in complete contrast with Pakistan’s approach of allowing full facilitation of their free movement,” the spokesman said.

Dr Faisal said India’s belligerent rhetoric and actions are a threat to regional peace and stability. “We hope the international community will take due cognisance and urge India to act responsibly and refrain from steps that only serve to vitiate an already tense environment,” he added.

In February this year, Indian government had claimed that its air force had killed ‘a very large number’ of militants in Pakistan and destroyed a terrorist camp run by banned outfit Jaish-e-Mohammad in Balakot by carrying out airstrikes. A day earlier, the Indian army chief said that the camp in Balakot had been ‘reactivated’ and that 500 terrorists are ‘moving’ towards India. “Balakot has been reactivated. Balakot was affected, damaged and destroyed. The action had been taken by the Indian Air Force and now they are reactivated,” Gen Rawat was reported as saying by the Indian media. “We have a minimum number of 500 people. Depending on the weather pattern they keep moving. As the temperature keeps falling, they move. Figures keep fluctuating depending on where terrorists are. We have taken measures and put in more troops along Line of Control.”

The Indian army chief’s claim was also rubbished by the Pakistan Army, with the military’s media wing terming the allegation of infiltration as a ‘pretext for a false flag operation’ by India. “Irresponsible statements by Indian military commanders particularly about AJK are expression of their frustration due to their failure to handle [the] situation in Indian-held Kashmir and attempts to divert world’s attention from Indian state terrorism and siege of IHK,” a tweet by the director general of Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said.

It said India’s accusations of infiltration or the presence of alleged terrorist camps in Pakistan are “pretext for a false flag operation/misadventure which if tried shall have serious consequences for regional peace.” “Pak Armed Forces are fully prepared to respond to any aggression/misadventure regardless of cost,” another tweet said.

The Foreign Office also denied Indian claims on social media that Pakistan failed to garner sufficient support for its stance on occupied valley in the United States Human Rights Council (UNHRC), saying that the reports are ‘contrary to facts and based on lies’. The statement by Dr Faisal said that Pakistan has ‘successfully highlighted in Geneva the ongoing human rights violations and aggression by the Indian forces in occupied Kashmir’. He added that no voting has been held in the UNHCR session. “More than 50 countries demanded India to lift the curfew and end the lockdown [in occupied Kashmir] during the UNHCR session,” the statement said. “The Kashmir issue was discussed in the UNHCR session due to Pakistan’s efforts.”