Indian Prime Minister Modi urged his Pakistani counterpart to take “firm and immediate action” against those behind the attack.
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The attack is being seen as a blow to an apparent Indo-Pakistani peace initiative launched just days ago.
There are strong indications that the terrorists were assisted by a drugs racket operating along the border and the heavy arms and ammunition they used could have been dispatched from Pakistan before they themselves crossed the border.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. At least twice it appeared that the attack had ended, but fresh gunfire and explosions erupted both times. By then, the talks between the National Security Advisers had taken place in Bangkok.
Indian forces have killed the last of the six militants who attacked an air force base near the Pakistan border over the weekend, the defense minister said on Tuesday, though soldiers were still searching the base as a precaution.
The air force base is spread out about 1600 acres and the Indian security forces went busy sanitizing the whole area thoroughly so that there was no further threat from the terrorists.
“The claim will invariably draw yet more scrutiny of anti-India militants based inside Pakistan, and in Kashmir in particular”, it said.
The Indian government official earlier said security forces had killed four of the attackers, adding that one was believed to be holed up in the facility.
India alleges that the attack was carried out by militants affiliated with Jaish-e-Muhammad, a group banned by Pakistan.
National Investigation Agency (NIA) is questioning Gurdaspur SP Salwinder Singh, his friend Rajesh Verma and the cook in connection with the Pathankot terror attack case. He did not give details in the interview with a television news channel TimesNow on Tuesday. Modi told Sharif that India has provided “specific and actionable” evidence to enable it to crack down on those responsible for the raid, the Indian statement said.
Moreover, it said that both leaders agreed to cooperate in the fight against terrorism. It was the language used in the statement and the fact that Pakistan issued statement first and uploaded the same on its website made the Indian Diplomats come to the conclusion tha tit was done by Pakistan in haste under United States pressure.
Meanwhile, spokesperson to the Pakistan PM, Musadik Malik said Pakistan has always supported peace in the region and has been fighting a war against terrorism in order to wipe it out from the region.
India accuses Pakistan of arming and training insurgents in its portion of Kashmir.
As for the attack itself, top sources within the government say they are sure that there is involvement of Pakistan establishment at some level and more importantly the attack seems to have been planned in very short span of time to avoid getting traced and this is why the attackers had no idea about where the hangers were.
Officials also praised security forces for preventing casualties among civilians, including the families of air force personnel who live on the base. But, its response towards the Pathankot attack has been responsible.
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The conversation between the NSAs is important, officials and experts said, because Janjua, a retired lieutenant general from the Pakistani army, is known for his proximity to army chief Raheel Sharif.
