Pakistan announces new missile test-launch
The Pakistani military has successfully test launched a Fatah series short-range surface-to-surface missile, according to the country's armed forces press service.
Monday's launch was the second such event in three days, and comes as tensions between Pakistan and neighboring India remain high following last month's deadly terrorist attack in Kashmir.
The test launch of the missile, which has a range of 120 kilometers (74.5 miles) was 'aimed at ensuring the operational readiness of troops and validating key technical parameters, including the missile's advanced navigation system and enhanced accuracy,' according to a statement from The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).
The Fatah missile series is a family of domestically developed surface-to-surface guided rocket systems produced by Pakistan's state-owned defense conglomerate, Global Industrial & Defence Solutions (GIDS).
The event 'was witnessed by senior officers of Pakistan Army' who 'expressed complete confidence in the operational preparedness… of Pakistan Army to thwart any aggression against the territorial integrity of Pakistan,' added the statement.
On Saturday, Islamabad successfully tested a surface-to-surface missile called the Abdali Weapon System, which has a range of 450km (280 miles). Both missile tests were part of a military drill named Exercise Indus.
India has not officially commented on the tests yet. However, the Hindustan Times reported before the first drill that New Delhi had condemned the planned Pakistani ballistic missile test as a 'reckless act of provocation.'
The escalation between Islamabad and New Delhi came after terrorists gunned down 26 civilians in the Baisaran Valley, a popular tourist destination in Indian-administered Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir on April 22.
The Resistance Front, which is suspected to have links to the Pakistan-based militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba, first took credit for the attack but later appeared to retract its claim. Indian authorities have named three individuals as suspects; two of them are Pakistani citizens.
Following the incident, India accused Pakistan of supporting armed militants involved in cross-border operations—an allegation that Pakistan has strongly rejected.
Last week, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi granted the country's armed forces 'full operational freedom' to respond to the terrorist attack.
Both nations have expelled diplomats, closed airspace, and engaged in cross-border shelling along the Line of Control (LoC), a military demarcation line that divides the two nations.
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