The incident sharply increased tensions between the bitter, nuclear-armed rivals and will raise fears of a potential military escalation.
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“Our men are ready to give a befitting response”, he was quoted by the news wire as saying in reply to a reporter’s question. He did not elaborate.
India has put the blame on Pakistan for the Sunday morning attack, with the Prime Minister asserting that the perpetrators will not go unpunished.
Muslim-majority India-controlled Kashmir has been the site of non-stop deadly protests between government forces and separatists fighting to end India’s rule of the region.
Home Minister Rajnath Singh, who cancelled his scheduled trips to Russian Federation and the United States, tweeted that he had spoken to the region’s political and military leadership. However, the Uri tragedy should be seen more as a major event which India can magnify many times to sell Pakistan as an exporter of terror to the world rather than pushing for a full-scale armed conflict. Pakistan said that “India’s charge is “totally baseless and irresponsible”.
India and Pakistan each govern parts of Kashmir but both claim the region in full.
Pakistan army spokesman Lt Gen Asim Saleem Bajwa said that following the attack Director Generals of Military Operations (DGMOs) of the two countries discussed the situation along the Line of Control through hotline.
Helicopters from the Army’s 19 divisional headquarters in Baramulla have been pressed into service and the injured Army personnel have been evacuated from the encounter site, the sources said. Smoke rose from the compound, set in mountainous terrain.
Meanwhile, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh is chairing a high-level review meeting in Delhi in wake of the terror attack. “My thoughts are with the bereaved families”, the Prime Minister said in a series of tweets.
The U.S. State Department “strongly condemned” the Uri attack, which comes weeks after Secretary of State John Kerry visited New Delhi. This is the highest casualty the army has suffered in a single attack in years. He has also Hurriyet leaders that Pakistan will raise Kashmir issue at every global forum.
However, Pakistani foreign office out rightly rejected Indian stance and demanded to stop brutality against Kashmir.
He further added that India should pay more attention to the Uri sector instead of the annual session of the United Nations General Assembly.
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Pakistan and Kashmiris always asked India to resolve the issue under 5 January 1949 United Nations resolution but New Delhi never ever respected worldwide laws and reluctant to conduct plebiscites under United Nations arrangements. India nearly went into full battlefront after the 2001 Parliament attack and pulled an unnatural yet critically required restrained reaction after the 2008 Mumbai attacks.
