ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Air Force Wednesday struck at non-military targets across the Line of Control and shot down two Indian aircraft inside the Pakistan airspace, the Foreign Office and the military spokesmen said. The military spokesman Major General Asif Ghafoor in his tweet said the Pakistan Air Force shot down two Indian aircraft inside Pakistani airspace who crossed the Line of Control (LoC) to retaliate the initial strikes. "One of the aircraft fell inside AJ&K while other fell inside IoK. Two Indian pilots arrested by troops on ground," he said. The Foreign Office in a statement said the Pakistan Air Force undertook the strikes across the Line of Control from within Pakistani airspace. "This was not a retaliation to continued Indian belligerence," the FO statement said. "Pakistan has taken strikes at non-military target, avoiding human loss and collateral damage," the Foreign Office said. Pakistan said the strikes were made to demonstrate its "right, will and capability for self defence." "We have no intention of escalation, but are fully prepared to do so if forced into that paradigm," and added Pakistan undertook the action with clear warning and in broad daylight. The Foreign Office said for the past few years, India has been trying to establish what they call "a new normal" a thinly veiled term for doing acts of aggression at whatever pretext they wish on a given day. "If India is striking at the so-called terrorist backers without a shred of evidence, we also retain reciprocal rights to retaliate against elements that enjoy Indian patronage while carrying out acts of terror in Pakistan." Pakistan said it does not wish to follow the route adopted by India. "We wish that India gives peace a chance and to resolve issues like a mature democratic nation.” On Tuesday, General Asif Ghafoor while rubbishing the claims of Indians that their aircraft stayed in Pakistan’s airspace for 21 minutes and killed 350 terrorists asked the adversary to get ready for response. "I said three things: You will never be able to surprise us and we have not been surprised. We were ready, we responded, we denied. I said we will retain the escalation ladder. We have that initiative in our hand," he said. "I am saying that we will surprise you. Wait for that surprise. Our response will be different. See it for yourself. The response will come, and response will come differently," he said.<doc-sep>Pakistan and India say they have shot down each other's warplanes in a dramatic escalation of their conflict over the disputed region of Kashmir. The Pakistani military initially said on February 27 that the country's air force had downed two India Air Force jets in its airspace and captured two pilots on the ground in the Pakistan-controlled part of Kashmir. But a spokesman later tweeted that there was "only one pilot under Pakistan Army’s custody." India confirmed the loss of one of its fighter jets and said a pilot was missing while it foiled an attack by Pakistan jets over the Himalayan region. It also said that it had shot down a Pakistani jet. Amid the escalation, Pakistan closed its airspace to commercial flights “until further notice," while airports were shut in India and a vast area of airspace north of New Delhi was closed to civilian flights. The developments come a day after Indian warplanes carried out an air strike in northeastern Pakistan on what New Delhi said was a militant training camp. The aerial attack was the first launched across the Line of Control (LoC) that serves as a de facto border in Kashmir since a war between the two neighbors in 1971. Tensions have been high between Islamabad and New Delhi since a February 14 suicide attack that killed at least 41 Indian troops in Muslim-majority Kashmir, which is claimed by both countries. In an address to the nation, Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan on February 27 called for talks with India and expressed hope that "better sense" will prevail to deescalate the situation. "History tells us that wars are full of miscalculation. My question is that given the weapons we have, can we afford miscalculation?" Khan said. "We should sit down and talk." Earlier in the day, Indian Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj said that his country "does not wish to see further escalation.”​ “India will continue to act with responsibility and restraint," Swaraj said during a visit to China. Nuclear-armed India and Pakistan have fought two of their three full-fledged wars over the Himalayan territory since their partition during independence from Britain in 1947. In a separate incident on February 27, a helicopter crashed and exploded into flames outside the main city of Srinagar in Indian-administered Kashmir, killing three people, local officials said. The cause of the crash was unknown. The day also saw shelling across the LoC that killed six civilians on the Pakistani side, authorities said. India said its air strike early on February 26 killed "a very large number" of militants. Pakistan denied there had been casualties but warned that it would respond to what it called Indian “aggression.” The Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) militant group claimed responsibility for the February 14 attack on Indian security forces. India said its neighbor had a "direct hand" in the attack and accused it of providing sanctuary to the militants. Islamabad denies involvement. EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said in a statement on February 27 that India and Pakistan should show the "utmost restraint." "This has the potential to lead to serious and dangerous consequences for the two countries and the wider region," Mogherini said. "We expect both countries to now exercise utmost restraint and avoid any further escalation of the situation," she added, urging the two sides to resume diplomatic contacts to defuse the crisis. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has called on India and Pakistan to avoid further military activity. In a February 26 statement, Pompeo said he had spoken with his Indian and Pakistani counterparts. "I expressed to both ministers that we encourage India and Pakistan to exercise restraint, and avoid escalation at any cost. I also encouraged both ministers to prioritize direct communication and avoid further military activity," he said. Russia and China, a Pakistan ally, have also urged calm. With reporting by Reuters, AFP, AP, dpa, and RFE/RL's Radio Mashaal<doc-sep>India Pakistan: Kashmir fighting sees Indian aircraft downed Published 27 February 2019 media caption Footage appears to show wreckage from a downed Indian jet Pakistan says it has shot down two Indian military jets and captured a pilot in a major escalation between the nuclear powers over Kashmir. India said it had lost one MiG-21 fighter and demanded the immediate and safe return of its pilot. Pakistani PM Imran Khan said the two sides could not afford a miscalculation with the weapons they had. India and Pakistan - both nuclear-armed states - claim all of Kashmir, but control only parts of it. They have fought three wars since independence from Britain and partition in 1947. All but one were over Kashmir. The aerial attacks across the Line of Control (LoC) dividing Indian and Pakistani territory are the first since a war in 1971. They follow a militant attack in Kashmir which killed at least 40 Indian troops - the deadliest to take place during a three-decade insurgency against Indian rule in Kashmir. A Pakistan-based group said it carried out the attack. The BBC's Soutik Biswas, in Delhi, says the challenge for India and Pakistan now is to contain the latest escalation before things get completely out of control. What do we know about the situation? Pakistan's military spokesman said that Pakistan fighter jets had carried out "strikes" - exactly what they did remains unclear - in Indian-administered Kashmir on Wednesday. Two Indian air force jets then responded, crossing the de facto border that divides Kashmir. "Our jets were ready and we shot both of them down," Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor said. He said that one Indian pilot was in the custody of the Pakistani army. Officials had previously said two pilots had been captured and one had been taken to hospital. No explanation has been given as to why the numbers have changed. Maj Gen Ghafoor said the captured Indian pilot, Wing Commander Abhinandan, was being "treated as per norms of military ethics". Earlier Pakistan's information ministry published but subsequently deleted a video showing the pilot - blindfolded and with blood on his face - identifying himself to soldiers. image copyright Pakistan Information Ministry image caption Pakistan's information ministry tweeted a video purporting to show a captured Indian pilot Another video circulating on social media appeared to show the pilot being beaten by residents in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir before the arrival of Pakistani soldiers. Pakistan's information ministry also tweeted what it said was footage of one of the downed Indian jets. Wreckges of Indian fighter planes burning. Well done Pakistan Air Force. The entire nation is proud of you. pic.twitter.com/TTIb1zvNZS — Information Ministry (@MoIB_Official) February 27, 2019 The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. View original tweet on Twitter In India, Ministry of External Affairs spokesman Raveesh Kumar acknowledged the loss of a jet and its pilot. He also said that an Indian plane had shot down a Pakistani fighter jet, and Indian ground forces observed it falling on the Pakistani side of the LoC. Pakistan denied any of its jets had been hit. India's foreign ministry later issued a statement demanding the release of its fighter pilot and condemning the images shared by Pakistan of Wing Commander Abhinandan, describing them as a "vulgar display of an injured personnel". How are India and Pakistan reacting? In a televised address, Prime Minister Khan offered India talks over terrorism and warned against further escalation. "If we let it happen, it will remain neither in my nor Narendra Modi's control," he said. "Our action is just to let them know that just like they intruded into our territory, we are also capable of going into their territory," he added. Mr Modi has yet to comment but was meeting top security and intelligence officials to discuss the situation, reports in India said. Indian Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj said her country would act "with responsibility and restraint". "India does not wish to see further escalation of the situation," she said, speaking from a meeting with Russian and Chinese foreign ministers in China. What about the earlier air strikes? Pakistan's assertion that it had shot down two Indian aircraft came shortly after Islamabad said its warplanes had struck targets in Indian territory. Indian authorities said the Pakistani jets had been forced to withdraw. Pakistan's military spokesman Maj Gen Ghafoor said jets had "engaged" six targets in Indian territory but then carried out air strikes on "open ground". "We don't want to go on the path of war," he said. In response to PAF strikes this morning as released by MoFA, IAF crossed LOC. PAF shot down two Indian aircrafts inside Pakistani airspace. One of the aircraft fell inside AJ&K while other fell inside IOK. One Indian pilot arrested by troops on ground while two in the area. — Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor (@OfficialDGISPR) February 27, 2019 The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. View original tweet on Twitter India said Tuesday's air strikes on Balakot in north-western Pakistan killed a large number of militants, but Pakistan said there had been no casualties. The US, EU and China have all called for restraint. 'These are uncharted waters' By Soutik Biswas, BBC News, Delhi The challenge for India and Pakistan now is to contain the escalation before things get completely out of control. It is almost unprecedented for two nuclear-armed countries to carry out air strikes into each other's territories. "We are in uncharted waters," Husain Haqqani, the former Pakistani ambassador to the US and adviser to three Pakistani prime ministers, told me late on Tuesday. An Indian defence analyst believes Indian security forces will now have to be prepared for a "full spectrum of conflict". However Daniel Markey from Johns Hopkins University in the US says we are "several steps away" from nuclear escalation. A further escalation, he believes, will happen if Pakistan's "next step were to raise the stakes by hitting Indian civilian targets". That is highly unlikely. What else is happening? Pakistan has closed its entire airspace, its civil aviation authority said. Nine airports in northern India were temporarily closed but have now reopened, reports in India say. Civil Aviation Authority of #Pakistan has officially closed its airspace until further notice & issued NOTAM. 🇵🇰 pic.twitter.com/qGZBMiKxvG — CAA Pakistan (@AirportPakistan) February 27, 2019 The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. View original tweet on Twitter The flight monitoring group Flight Radar says international flights have been avoiding the area. Recapping effects on aviation due to India-Pakistan situation. Additional updates will be posted at https://t.co/9NeSPvJkSy pic.twitter.com/TKfsqHXtRs — Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) February 27, 2019 The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. View original tweet on Twitter Later on Wednesday Thai Airways, which said it was directly affected by the closure of airspace, cancelled all Europe-bound flights and said it had requested permission to use other routes. Other airlines such as British Airways, Air India, Jet Airways, Qatar Airways and Singapore Airlines re-routed flights. Both Indian and Pakistani troops have been shelling across the LoC. Four Pakistani civilians were killed and 10 others were injured in cross-border shelling on Tuesday. On the Indian side, five soldiers were also injured in the firing, officials told the BBC. Schools in at least two districts along the LoC - Rajouri and Poonch - have been closed. People living along the de facto border have been asked to leave their homes. In a separate incident on Wednesday morning, six members of the Indian Air Force were killed when their helicopter crashed in Indian-administered Kashmir. India's defence ministry said the incident occurred during a routine operation and was an accident. Timeline of India-Pakistan tensions media caption In December Yogita Limaye examined why there had been a rise in violence in Kashmir October 1947: First war between India and Pakistan over Kashmir just two months after they become independent nations. August 1965: The neighbours fight another brief war over Kashmir. December 1971: India supports East Pakistan's bid to become independent. The Indian air force conducts bombing raids inside Pakistan. The war ends with the creation of Bangladesh.<doc-sep>
Pakistan shot down two Indian Air Force aircraft after they crossed into its airspace, the army said. The incident comes amid an ongoing border crisis between the two nuclear powers. The Pakistani Air Force downed “two Indian aircrafts inside Pakistani airspace” after they crossed the Line of Control (LoC) in Kashmir, the army’s spokesperson, Major General Asif Ghafoor, tweeted. It was later revealed that one of the machines was a MiG 21 fighter jet. In response to PAF strikes this morning as released by MoFA, IAF crossed LOC. PAF shot down two Indian aircrafts inside Pakistani airspace. One of the aircraft fell inside AJ&K while other fell inside IOK. One Indian pilot arrested by troops on ground while two in the area. — Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor (@OfficialDGISPR) February 27, 2019 According to the spokesperson, one aircraft fell inside the Pakistani-controlled part of Kashmir, while the other went down inside the territory controlled by India. Ghafoor stated in a press briefing that two pilots were “recovered and provided all necessary medical treatment.” The government later clarified that only one Indian pilot was captured. A video released by Radio Pakistan shows the man blindfolded with his hands tied behind his back. Islamabad also claimed it conducted airstrikes into Indian-held Kashmir. At the same time, media had reported on an Indian Mi-17 military helicopter crashing inside the Indian-controlled area of Kashmir. It is not clear if it was one of the aircraft downed by Pakistan. Read more There were also reports of India shooting down a Pakistani F-16 fighter jet. However, Islamabad dismissed them as false. Meanwhile, the spokesman for the Pakistani Army stated that the military was acting “purely in self-defense.” “War is no solution. The people of both nations deserve to live in peace,” Asif Ghafoor said. Indian Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj, while on a trip to China, stated New Delhi wishes to avoid any “further escalation of the situation” and will “continue to act with responsibility and restraint.” Tensions between India and Pakistan escalated dramatically on Wednesday with reports of cross-border shelling along the Line of Control in Kashmir. Pakistani officials said that at least four civilians were killed from mortar fire. The Indian Army said that five of its soldiers were wounded during the shelling from Pakistan. On Tuesday, New Delhi sent a dozen jets to bomb what it said were terrorist camps on Pakistani soil. It was the first time since 1971, when the Indian Air Force crossed the LoC. Islamabad said that the raid failed to produce any damage on the ground and vowed to respond to any “misadventures” along the border with India. Think your friends would be interested? Share this story!