Ready for war and peace, choice is yours, PM tells India
Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif on Wednesday visited the frontline areas of 'Operation Bunyan-um Marsoos,' part of Marka-e-Haq (Battle for Truth), expressing solidarity with armed forces and lauding their role in defending the country's sovereignty.
On May 10, Pakistan launched 'Operation Bunyan-um Marsoos' and deployed its Al-Fatah missile and targeted multiple Indian military installations. Pakistan destroyed BrahMos storage facilities at Beas and Nagrota and S-400 battery systems at Adampur and Bhuj were also attacked and effectively neutralised by Pakistan Air Force.
During his visit to Pasrur Cantonment near Sialkot on Wednesday, prime minister was accompanied by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, Chief of Army Staff General Asim Munir, Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Zaheer Ahmed Babar Sidhu, federal ministers Ahsan Iqbal and Attaullah Tarar, Corps Commander Sialkot, and senior civil and military officials.
Shahbaz met with officers and soldiers actively engaged in the military operation. 'The nation is proud of your dedication and sacrifice,' the prime minister told troops during his interaction, as per a statement issued by the Prime Minister's Office.
The prime minister also announced plans to visit various air and naval bases in the coming days to meet with personnel from the Pakistan Air Force and Pakistan Navy, in a show of support for all branches of the armed forces.
During his visit, Shehbaz said it is up to India to choose war or peace in relations with Pakistan. 'We are ready for war and peace. Choice is yours,' he said.
Prime minister also warned India from stopping water flow after it held the Indus Water Treaty in abeyance. 'If you stop our water, then it is the red line. Water is our right. The brave, valiant forces will fight for our right,' he said.
The prime minister said the Kashmir issue should be resolved as per the United Nations resolutions and then talks will be held on trade. He said trade talks cannot be held in isolation but rather through a comprehensive dialogue.
He said Pakistan has called for a complete and partial investigation into the Pahalgam attack and agreed to fully cooperate, but India responded by attacking in the dark of night and received a befitting reply.
He concluded by saying that Pakistan's martyrs have always been a source of pride for the nation. 'The nation shall eternally remain indebted to them.'
Also during the day, PM Shahbaz held a call with UN chief Antonio Guterres in which 'he expressed concerns over the continued provocative and inflammatory remarks by Indian leadership, as a threat to the fragile regional peace,' his office said in a statement.
Pakistan's foreign ministry said that it rejected Indian Prime Ministers Narendra Modi's 'provocative and inflammatory assertions' and his 'propensity to fabricate misleading narratives to justify aggression.'
'Make no mistake, we will closely monitor India's actions and behaviour in this regard in the coming days. We also urge the international community to do the same,' it added in a statement.
Earlier, Pakistan returned a captured border guard to India, in a fresh sign of detente after a ceasefire ended four days of conflict between the two neighbours.
The guard was captured a day after an April attack in Jammu and Kashmir that killed 26 people and sparked tit-for-tat missile, drone and fighter jet attacks.
'Purnam Kumar Shaw, who had been in the custody of Pakistan Rangers since 23 April 2025, was handed over to India,' India's Border Security Force said in a statement. The handover was 'conducted peacefully and in accordance with established protocols,' it added. 'I am very happy today,' Shaw's wife Rajani, who is pregnant, told reporters following the announcement. She had earlier told the Indian Express newspaper that before the ceasefire she had 'lost all hope.'
Pakistan's army announced on Wednesday a new death toll from the fighting, saying India's 'unprovoked and reprehensible dastardly attacks' killed 40 civilians, half of them women and children. It also said 13 military service members had been killed during operations. India has said that 15 civilians and five soldiers died on its side.
Agencies
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Middle East Eye
16 hours ago
- Middle East Eye
Indian Prime Minister calls for de-escalation in phone call with Iran's president
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has urged calm and dialogue during a phone conversation with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, according to a statement from India's foreign ministry. Modi was briefed on the latest developments in the Iran-Israel conflict during the call, the ministry said on Sunday. He 'emphasised the need for immediate de-escalation, dialogue and diplomacy as the way forward' and reaffirmed India's backing for 'early restoration of regional peace, security and stability,' the statement added.
Gulf Today
a day ago
- Gulf Today
Pakistan formally recommends US President Trump for Nobel Peace Prize
The Pakistani government has decided to formally recommend US President Donald Trump for the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize in recognition of his decisive diplomatic intervention and pivotal leadership' during the recent India-Pakistan crisis. In a post shared on X on Friday night, the government said the international community bore witness to unprovoked and unlawful Indian aggression, which constituted a grave violation of Pakistan's sovereignty and territorial integrity, resulting in the tragic loss of innocent lives, including women, children, and the elderly. In May, a surprise announcement by Trump of a ceasefire brought an abrupt end to a four-day conflict between India and Pakistan. Trump has since repeatedly said that he averted a nuclear war, saved millions of lives, and grumbled that he got no credit for it. Pakistan agrees that US diplomatic intervention ended the fighting, but India says it was a bilateral agreement between the two militaries. "President Trump demonstrated great strategic foresight and stellar statesmanship through robust diplomatic engagement with both Islamabad and New Delhi, which de-escalated a rapidly deteriorating situation," Pakistan said. "This intervention stands as a testament to his role as a genuine peacemaker." Governments can nominate people for the Nobel Peace Prize. There was no immediate response from Washington. A spokesperson for the Indian government did not respond to a request for comment. Trump has repeatedly said that he's willing to mediate between India and Pakistan over Kashmir region, their main source of enmity. Islamabad, which has long called for international attention to Kashmir, is delighted. In a social media post on Friday, Trump gave a long list of conflicts he said he had resolved, including India and Pakistan and the Abraham accords in his first term between Israel and some Muslim-majority countries. He added: "I won't get a Nobel Peace Prize no matter what I do." Pakistan's move to nominate Trump came in the same week its army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, met the US leader for lunch. It was the first time that a Pakistani military leader had been invited to the White House when a civilian government was in place in Islamabad. Following the Indian aggression, Pakistan "launched Operation Bunyan-um Marsoos — a measured, resolute, and precise military response, the post read and noted that the response was executed to exercise the country's "fundamental right to self-defence' and "carefully to re-establish deterrence,' defending its "territorial integrity while consciously avoiding civilian harm.' The post further said that "at a moment of heightened regional turbulence,' President Trump "demonstrated great strategic foresight and stellar statesmanship through robust diplomatic engagement with both Islamabad and New Delhi.' It continued that the US president de-escalated a rapidly deteriorating situation, ultimately securing a ceasefire and averting a broader conflict between the two nuclear states that would have had catastrophic consequences for millions of people in the region and beyond. The post said that this intervention stands as a testament to Trump's role as a genuine peacemaker and his commitment to conflict resolution through dialogue. The government also acknowledged President Trump's "sincere offers to help resolve the longstanding dispute of Jammu and Kashmir between India and Pakistan - an issue that lies at the heart of regional instability. "Durable peace in South Asia would remain elusive until the implementation of United Nations Security Council resolutions concerning Jammu and Kashmir,' it said. The government noted that President Trump's leadership during the 2025 Pakistan-India crisis "manifestly showcases the continuation of his legacy of pragmatic diplomacy and effective peace-building.' The post said that Pakistan remains hopeful that Trump's "earnest efforts' will continue to contribute towards regional and global stability, particularly in the context of ongoing crises in the Middle East, including the humanitarian tragedy unfolding in Gaza and the deteriorating escalation involving Iran.
Dubai Eye
a day ago
- Dubai Eye
Pakistan backs Trump for Nobel Peace Prize
Pakistan said on Saturday it would recommend US President Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize, an accolade that he has said he craves, for his work in helping to resolve the recent conflict between India and Pakistan. Some analysts in Pakistan said the move might persuade Trump to think again about potentially joining Israel in striking Iran's nuclear facilities. Pakistan has condemned Israel's action as a violation of international law and a threat to regional stability. In May, a surprise announcement by Trump of a ceasefire brought an abrupt end to a four-day conflict between nuclear-armed foes India and Pakistan. Trump has since repeatedly said that he averted a nuclear war, saved millions of lives, and grumbled that he got no credit for it. Pakistan agrees that US diplomatic intervention ended the fighting, but India says it was a bilateral agreement between the two militaries. "President Trump demonstrated great strategic foresight and stellar statesmanship through robust diplomatic engagement with both Islamabad and New Delhi, which de-escalated a rapidly deteriorating situation," Pakistan said. "This intervention stands as a testament to his role as a genuine peacemaker." Governments can nominate people for the Nobel Peace Prize. There was no immediate response from Washington or the Indian government. Trump has repeatedly said that he's willing to mediate between India and Pakistan over the disputed Kashmir region. But his stance has upended US policy in South Asia, which had favoured India as a counterweight to China, and put in question previously close relations between Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In a social media post on Friday, Trump gave a long list of conflicts he said he had resolved, including India and Pakistan and the Abraham accords in his first term. He added: "I won't get a Nobel Peace Prize no matter what I do." Pakistan's move to nominate Trump came in the same week its army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, met the US leader for lunch. It was the first time that a Pakistani military leader had been invited to the White House when a civilian government was in place in Islamabad. Trump's planned meeting with Modi at the G7 summit in Canada last week did not take place after the US president left early, but the two later spoke by phone, in which Modi said "India does not and will never accept mediation" in its dispute with Pakistan, according to the Indian government. Mushahid Hussain, a former chair of the Senate Defence Committee in Pakistan's parliament, suggested nominating Trump for the peace prize was justified. "Trump is good for Pakistan," he said. "If this panders to Trump's ego, so be it." But the move was not universally applauded in Pakistan, where Trump's support for Israel's war in Gaza has inflamed passions.
