ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Navy said on Tuesday that it had thwarted an Indian submarine’s attempt to infiltrate the country’s waters at a time when tensions continue to remain high between the two South Asian, nuclear-armed neighbors.
“Pakistan Navy thwarted every effort of Indian submarine to avoid the detection. To maintain peace, the Indian submarine was not targeted which reflects Pakistan’s desire for peace,” a spokesman said in the statement.
According to Pakistan, this was the second instance of an Indian submarine being detected since November 2016.
The statement added that India should learn from this incident and work toward peace. “The Pakistan Navy used its specialized skills to ward off the submarine, successfully keeping it away from entering Pakistani waters,” the statement added.
Tensions along the border have remained high since February 14 when a suicide bomber killed at least 40 paramilitary troopers in the Pulwama district of Indian-administered Kashmir, with New Delhi maintaining that the attack was carried out by a Pakistan-based militant outfit, Jaish-e-Mohammad. Pakistan denies the allegations.
The incident led to both the countries indulging in airstrikes resulting in Pakistan capturing an Indian Air Force pilot on February 27.
While Islamabad decided to release Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman on March 1 as a peace gesture, Pakistan’s armed forces continue to remain vigilant.
Pakistan Navy foils India’s attempt to infiltrate with submarine
Pakistan Navy foils India’s attempt to infiltrate with submarine
- Says vessel was not deployed to maintain peace
- Tensions remain high between the two nuclear-armed neighbors
Pakistan, seven Muslim nations back Palestinian technocratic body, stress Gaza-West Bank unity
- The National Committee for the Administration of the Gaza Strip was announced on January 14
- Muslim nations call for consolidation of the ceasefire and unimpeded humanitarian aid into Gaza
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and seven other Muslim-majority countries on Thursday welcomed the formation of a temporary Palestinian technocratic body to administer Gaza, stressing that it must manage daily civilian affairs while preserving the institutional and territorial link between the Gaza Strip and the West Bank amid the ongoing peace efforts.
In a joint statement, the foreign ministers of Pakistan, Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Türkiye, Indonesia and the United Arab Emirates said the newly announced National Committee for the Administration of the Gaza Strip would play a central role during the second phase of a broader peace plan aimed at ending the war and paving the way for Palestinian self-governance.
“The Ministers emphasize the importance of the National Committee commencing its duties in managing the day-to-day affairs of the people of Gaza, while preserving the institutional and territorial link between the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, ensuring the unity of Gaza, and rejecting any attempts to divide it,” the statement said.
The committee, announced on Jan. 14, is a temporary transitional body established under United Nations Security Council Resolution 2803 and is to operate in coordination with the Palestinian Authority, the ministers said.
The statement said the move forms part of the second phase of US President Donald Trump’s Comprehensive Peace Plan for Gaza, which the ministers said they supported, praising Trump’s efforts to end the war, ensure the withdrawal of Israeli forces and prevent the annexation of the occupied West Bank.
The top leaders of all eight Muslim countries attended a meeting with Trump in New York last September, shortly before he unveiled the Gaza peace plan.
The ministers also called for the consolidation of the ceasefire, unimpeded humanitarian aid into Gaza, early recovery and reconstruction and the eventual return of the Palestinian Authority to administer the territory, leading to a just and sustainable peace based on UN resolutions and a two-state solution on pre-1967 lines with East Jerusalem as the Palestinian capital.
