after-days-of-shelling-loc-sees-rare-calm-night

India and Pakistan observed their first calm night along the Line of Control (LoC) in recent days, the Indian Army said on Sunday, marking a brief pause in the escalating border tensions that followed a deadly terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam last month.

 

The two nuclear-armed neighbours, locked in intense cross-border firing for four consecutive days, agreed to a ceasefire on Saturday evening, seeking to de-escalate the spiralling hostilities.

 

“The night remained largely peaceful across Jammu and Kashmir and other areas along the International Border. No incidents have been reported, marking the first calm night in recent days,” the Indian Army said.

 

However, despite the ceasefire, the fragile calm was shattered when drones were sighted and intercepted in various locations, including Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir and parts of Gujarat, just hours after the truce came into effect at 5 pm.

Also read: Navy was ready to strike Karachi, kept Pak ships in harbour

 

India, in a late-night press briefing, accused Pakistan of violating the freshly minted ceasefire and warned of a firm military response.

 

“Over the last few hours, there have been repeated violations of the understanding arrived at earlier this evening between the Directors General of Military Operations of India and Pakistan. This is a breach of the understanding arrived at earlier today. The armed forces are giving an adequate and appropriate response to these violations, and we take very, very serious notice of these violations,” Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri told reporters around 11:20 pm.

 

He called upon Pakistan to take “appropriate steps” to address the violations and to handle the situation with “seriousness and responsibility.”

 

“The armed forces are maintaining a strong vigil on the situation. They have been given instructions to deal strongly with any instances of repetition of the violations along the International Border as well as the Line of Control,” Mr Misri added.

 

The recent flare-up in hostilities followed a devastating terror attack in Pahalgam on 22 April, which left 26 people dead. The attack, which Indian authorities have linked to cross-border terror networks, prompted India to launch “Operation Sindoor” on 7 May, targeting nine terror sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).