Pakistan Indian Air Force Abhinandan Varthaman Balakot Indian Army 🇮🇳💪😇...Indian IAF Fighter Pilot #Abhinandan held captive comes back home tom. 🙏 for India’s firm stand and international glare. — Kiran Bedi (@thekiranbedi) 1551353728000 #WATCH: Robert Vadra reacts on the release of Wing Commander #AbhinandanVarthaman by Pakistan, says, "It is the bes… https://t.co/XhnNDMYBbY — ANI (@ANI) 1551355890000 Very glad to know that #WingCommandarAbhinandan will be heading home. I’ll wait for him to be back on Indian soil b… https://t.co/yKKjJT0iZY — Omar Abdullah (@OmarAbdullah) 1551355786000 Prime Minister informed the country's parliament thatWing Commanderwill be released on Friday.As a peace gesture we are releasing Wing Commander Abhinandan tomorrow, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan said.The surprise announcement came barely an hour after Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said that Prime Minister Khan is ready to talk to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to de-escalate Indo-Pak tensions.The announcement was greeted by thumping of desks by Pakistani lawmakers.Tension on both sides of the border have been high in the last few days. India conducted an air strike on Monday targeting Jaish-e-Mohammed's biggest training camp atin Pakistan. The next day Pakistan's aircraft violated Indian airspace along the LoC. IAF scrambled its MiG Fighters in pursuit. One of the MiG-21 Bisons was hit and the pilot Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman was captured.The three service chiefs namely, Air Force and Navy to address a joint press conference at 7pm today.Expressing his joy on the release of Abhinandan, Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh said, "I'm very happy, I had demanded his release earlier too. This is going to be a step towards goodwill and I hope this will be lasting. "Businessman Robert Vadra, brother-in-law of Congress President Rahul Gandhi, on Thursday said that the announcement about release of Wing Commander Abhinandan is the best news of the day. Speaking to ANI, Vadra said, "It is the best news for his family and everyone in India. We are very proud of him and our security forces. Peace is significant and very important. "Mehbooba Mufti tweeted, "The decision to hand over Wing Commander Abhinandan is a great gesture & shouldn't be seen in isolation. It also comes at a time when Pak could’ve chosen to further escalate an already tensed situation. I see it as a mark of reconciliation. Our leadership should reciprocate.Pak PM has exhibited real statesmanship today. It is time for our political leadership to step up & take measures to de escalate the current situation. People of J&K are living under unimaginable duress. How much longer will we suffer for?"<doc-sep>Text Size: A- A+ New Delhi: Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman will be released Friday, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has told his country’s parliament. Khan said he had called his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi on Wednesday evening to de-escalate tensions. He also said there were fears that India might launch a missile attack on Pakistan. Khan said he would speak to Turkey Thursday evening seeking mediation with New Delhi. He accused India of creating a fear that Pakistan was resorting to nuclear blackmail. But Islamabad was not doing any such thing, he said. “Pakistan wants peace, it is only working towards bringing peace and stability in this region. This tension is not good for any of the countries,” Khan said. He added that peace would bring economic growth which would in turn bring investment and this would lead to creation of jobs. Also read: Why Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman stands a good chance of surviving Pakistan ordeal He said Pakistan retaliated with its air force because it had to defend itself. He also stressed on the fact that the Pakistani army was ready and prepared. Khan’s statement came soon after New Delhi said that Varthaman is not a card Pakistan can use to negotiate with India, and New Delhi expects Islamabad to return him “immediately, safe and unharmed”. The fighter pilot who was captured by Pakistan Wednesday is an Indian and there is nothing for New Delhi to negotiate with Islamabad about his return, the sources said. Varthaman was captured by Pakistani forces after his MiG-21 fighter jet was shot and downed during a confrontation with Pakistani F-16s that had entered Indian airspace and dropped bombs near Indian military installations in the Nowshera area of Jammu and Kashmir. Varthaman ejected from his aircraft and landed across the Line of Control in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. Also read: Despite Imran Khan’s offer, Pakistan’s track record is why India has to escalate Subscribe to our channels on YouTube & Telegram<doc-sep>Wing Commander Abhinandan (second from left, File Photo) Wing Commander Abhinandan (second from left, File Photo) Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan Thursday said his government has decided to release Indian Air Force (IAF) Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman Friday (March 1). “As a peace gesture, we have decided to release the Indian pilot in our custody,” Khan told a joint session of parliament in Islamabad called to discuss the India-Pakistan situation. Khan’s announcement comes soon after media reports quoted Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi as saying that the country is considering freeing the IAF pilot if it leads to a de-escalation of tensions between the two countries. Khan has also offered to hold talks with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi. Meanwhile, government sources had told the Indian Express that India is in no mood to negotiate any deal and it wants Abhinandan back immediately and unharmed. Earlier, US President Donald Trump had said he has “reasonably attractive news from Pakistan and India”. “They have been going at it and we have been involved trying to have them stop. We have some reasonably decent news. I think hopefully that it’s going to come to an end,” Trump had said. Pakistan had on Wednesday claimed it shot down two Indian fighter jets over Pakistani air space and arrested a pilot, identified as Wing Commander Abhinandan amid the face off between the two countries. The Ministry of External Affairs later confirmed that a MiG 21 was lost and the pilot “missing in action”. “There is only one pilot under Pakistan Army’s custody. Wing Commander Abhinandan is being treated as per norms of military ethics,” Major General Asif Ghafoor, spokesperson of the Pakistan Armed Forces had said. Soon, videos started emerging on social media from Pakistan featuring Abhinandan — one showed him being assaulted by a mob, others showed him being interrogated. The government had summoned Pakistan Deputy High Commissioner to “strongly object” Pakistan’s vulgar display of an injured personnel of the Indian Air Force in violation of all norms of International Humanitarian Law and the Geneva Convention.” “It was made clear that Pakistan would be well advised to ensure that no harm comes to the Indian defence personnel in its custody. India also expects his immediate and safe return,” said the MEA. According to defence portal bharat-rakshak.com, Abhinandan was commissioned as a fighter pilot on June 19, 2004. It is learnt that he had recently completed his training at the Defence Services Staff College in Wellington, Tamil Nadu. The course trains officers from all three services for command and staff appointments. Tensions escalated between India and Pakistan in the wake of the Pulwama attack by Jaish-e-Mohammad on February 14. Twelve days after the Pulwama attack, India carried out air strikes against a Jaish camp in Balakot. In the operation, the government claimed, a very large number of JeM terrorists, trainers, senior commanders and groups of jihadis who were being trained for suicide attacks were eliminated.<doc-sep>ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday announced to release Indian pilot Abhinandan Varthaman on Friday as a peace gesture. The pilot was captured by Pakistani forces after his jet was downed on Thursday. The prime minister was giving a policy statement at a joint sitting of both houses of parliament convened to discuss situation that has emerged after Indian intrusion of Pakistan's airspace . The session is being attended by all the political parties in the Senate and the National Assembly. Policy Statement He paid tribute to the national and political parties for being united in the prevailing situation . He said even before being sworn in as prime minister in July, he had said that Pakistan would take two steps forward if India takes one step towards peace. The reason behind his statement, he said, was poverty in both Pakistan and India. He said on July 26 gave statement and followed it by letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi but didn't receive a encouraging response. He said Pakistan was expecting an incident ahead of Indian election seeing jingoistic rehtoric. Khan once again raised the question what his country was supposed to gain from Pulwama attack which India blamed on Pakistan. "India started blaming Pakistan within half an hour after Pulwama attack," he said. "After Indian aircraft violated airspace, Pakistan waited to ascertain the damages instead of reacting immediately", he said Khan said Pakistan showed responsibility despite knowing people's sentiment after India violated Pakistan's airspace. The prime minister acted against India and made sure there was no collateral damage. "We took action just to show our capability". He said on Wednesday he he tried to contact his Indian counterpart after the incident. Kashmir He said Indian people should think what made a youngster to become a suicide bomber in Kashmir, referring to a suicide attack in Pulwama that killed over 40 Indian troops. "There is a need for retrospection in India," he said. "There is need for debate in India on Kashmir". He said India seemed to blame the Pulwama attack on Islamic radicalization which was not true. The Pakistani leader said India should analyze the phenomenon because it had nothing to do with Islamic radicalization. He said the suicide attacks are results of desperation and humiliation, citing example form Sri Lanka where Tamil Tigers carried out several suicide bombings . The prime minister said if India takes action against Pakistan after any future incident in Kashmir, Islamabad will have no option but to retaliate . "Tension neither benefits Pakistan nor India," he said. He said Pakistan Army was ready to respond on Thursday expecting a missile attack from India. He said Pakistan and India should not even think of a war with kinds of weapons they have in their possession.<doc-sep>
Terming it a "gesture of peace", Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan announced on Thursday that captured Indian Air force pilot will be released on Friday. Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman will walk back home across the Wagah border. The announcement came after a joint session of the National Assembly, and a day after Khan extended an olive branch to India. Khan's crucial announcement came almost as an afterthought, at the tail end of his speech. He sat down, only to get up again to announce, "I forgot to inform that in our desire for peace and as the first step to open negotiations, we are releasing the Indian pilot tomorrow." "I tried to speak to Prime Minister Narendra Modi as I want to de-escalate prevailing tension between the two countries," Khan said earlier in his speech. "War would not favour India or Pakistan, given the kind of weapons the two countries have." Wing Commander Abhinandan was captured by the Pakistan Army on Wednesday after his MiG-21 Bison fell on the Pakistan side following a dogfight with Pakistan fighter jets. As per reports published in Pakistan media, he shot in the air twice as locals tried to capture him. Videos of him being thrashed by locals and being marched blindfolded, with a bloodied face, by the army were leaked on social media before being taken down in keeping with the Geneva Conventions. Pakistan army later released short videos of his interrogation, one showing him blindfolded; in another, he was asked about his residence in India and his family. On Wednesday, Khan had defended Pakistan Air Force's invasion of Indian air space. He had cautioned India, saying, "With the weapons you have and the weapons we have, can we really afford a miscalculation? If this escalates, it will no longer be in my control or in Narendra Modi's. Let's sit together and settle this with talks."