On Thursday, a senior official of Government of India claimed that there are 22 terror camps still operating in Pakistan, but no action is being taken against them. He further urged that India vowed to finish terrorism and warned of carrying out similar strikes against these terror outfits.
“As many as 22 terrorist training camps, including nine of JeM are still being run in Pakistan and there has been no action against them. Instead of taking action against terrorist groups, Pakistan escalated the situation and indulged in war hysteria by doing things like declaring emergency in Karachi, blocking air traffic and creating rumours, which is part of its familiar pattern,” the official said, adding, “India on the other hand exercised restraint”.
Warning Islamabad to take the responsibility of curbing down terrorism, the official went on to add, “India will carry out retaliatory counter-terrorism operation like the one on February 26, deep inside Pakistan, anytime there is an act of terrorism coming from across the border.”
To avenge the dastardly Pulwama terror attack, according to several reports, IAF jets dropped payloads at Balakot in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan on February 26. 12 Mirage 2000 jets took part in the operation that dropped 1000 Kg bombs on terror camps across the LOC, completely destroying it, reported ANI. The IAF air strikes completely destroyed Balakot, Chakothi and Muzaffarabad’s terror launch pads across the LOC and JeM control rooms were also destroyed.
Balakot is 50 kilometres away from PoK Muzzafarabad sector. So, basically, IAF has gone inside 50 kilometres deep and dropped bombs on Pakistani terror camps. It also means that it has attacked the Pakistani military directly. It is India’s deepest strike against Pakistan since 1971, and IAF jets returned without any casualties, that’s a very big thing. It’s a super successful mission.
According to a Firstpost report, Balakot is one of the Jaish-e-Mohammed’s oldest and best-known training camps, which has found mention in many past criminal cases in India and abroad. Balakot is of great significance for Jihadists. Ayesha Jalal in her book “Partisans of Allah” described Balakot as the epicenter of Jihad in South Asia.
When asked about the usage of F-16 fighter jets by Pakistan, the official said India has given to the US details of the violation of the end user agreement by Pakistan. On February 27, in an epic dogfight, an IAF MiG-21 not only gave a tough fight to the far more superior F-16 fighters belonging to Pakistan, but also shot it down. While MiG 21 is on the verge of retirement, F-16, on the other hand, is seen as one of the most popular aircraft currently in modern military service. The F-16 was developed keeping in mind the first-hand war experience and therefore, it is built considering combat requirements. F-16 is a battle-tested fighter jet. A MiG 21 downing F-16 is an unbelievable feat.
The official further stated that Pakistan has been cornered internationally on the economic front and India is opposed to any IMF bailout package to Pakistan. On the issue of Pakistan’s terror funding, he continued that Pakistan has received as many as 21 IMF bailout packages, however, most of the funds has been diverted to ‘non-civilian means’.