Pakistani village asks: Where are bodies of militants India says it bombed?

[timmy]

A resident points to the damaged site where Indian military aircrafts released payload in Jaba village, Balakot, Pakistan February 28, 2019. Picture taken February 28, 2019.   | Photo Credit: Reuters

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Balakot Air Strikes

Western diplomats in Islamabad also said they did not believe the Indian air force hit a militant camp.

The only confirmed victim of India's air strike against Pakistan is still unsure why he was shaken awake in the early hours of Tuesday by an explosion that rocked his mud brick house and left him with a cut above his right eye.

“They say they wanted to hit some terrorists. What terrorists can you see here?” said 62-year-old Nooran Shah, a resident of Jaba village, near the northeastern town of Balakot in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

“We are here. Are we terrorists?”

India says Tuesday's raid destroyed a major training camp of Jaish-e Mohammad, a militant group that claimed responsibility for a February 14 attack in Kashmir that killed 40 members of a paramilitary police unit.

Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale said the strike killed “a very large number of Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorists, trainers, senior commanders, and groups of jihadis who were being trained for Fidayeen action were eliminated.” Fidayeen is a term used to describe Islamist militants on suicide missions.

Another senior government official told reporters that about 300 militants had been killed.

On Thursday, though, a senior defence official appeared to backtrack on the claims. Asked about how much damage the warplanes had caused, Air Vice Marshal R.G.K. Kapoor said it was “premature” to provide details about casualties. But he said the armed forces had “fairly credible evidence” of the damage inflicted on the camp by the air strikes.

India's previous death toll estimates have been rubbished by Pakistan, which says the operation was a failure that saw Indian jets bomb a largely empty hillside without hurting anyone.

On the wooded slopes above Jaba, villagers pointed to four bomb craters and some splintered pine trees, but could see little other impact from the series of explosions that blasted them awake at around 3.00 a.m.

“It shook everything,” said Abdur Rasheed, who drives a pickup van around the area. He said there weren't any human casualties: “No one died. Only some pine trees died, they were cut down. A crow also died.”

Religious school appears intact

Jaba is set in a thickly wooded area of hills and streams that opens the way to the scenic Kaghan valley, a popular holiday destination for Pakistani tourists. It is a little over 60 km from Abbottabad, the garrison town where Osama Bin Laden was killed by American Special Forces in 2011.

Locals say 400 to 500 people live locally, scattered across hills in mudbrick homes. Reuters spoke to about 15 people, none of whom knew of any casualties apart from Nooran Shah.

“I haven't seen any dead bodies, only a local who was hurt by something or hit by some window, he was hurt,” said Abdur Rasheed, echoing numerous others.

In Basic Health Unit, Jaba, the nearest hospital, Mohammad Saddique, an official who was on duty on the night of the attack, also dismissed claims of major casualties.

“It is just a lie. It is rubbish,” he said. “We didn't receive even a single injured person. Only one person got slightly hurt and he was treated there. Even he wasn't brought here.”

In Balakot, a town largely rebuilt after an earthquake in 2005, Zia Ul Haq, senior medical officer in Tehsil Headquarters Hospital said no casualties had been brought in on Tuesday.

People in the area said Jaish-e Mohammad did have a presence, running not an active training camp but a madrassa, or religious school, about one km from where the bombs fell.

“It is Taleem ul Quran madrassa. The kids from the village study there. There is no training,” said Nooran Shah.

A sign which had been up earlier in the week identifying the madrassa's affiliation to Jaish-e Mohammad had been removed by Thursday and soldiers prevented reporters from gaining access.

But it was possible to see the structure from the back. It appeared intact, like the trees surrounding it, with no sign of any damage of the kind seen near the bomb craters.

Western diplomats in Islamabad also said they did not believe the Indian air force hit a militant camp.

“There was no militant training camp there. It hasn't been there for a few years they moved it. It's common knowledge amongst our intelligence,” said one of them.

https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/pakistani-village-asks-where-are-bodies-of-militants-india-says-it-bombed/article26404918.ece

@Mitron @Kool_SRG

[MadMax_007]

Truth Vs Hype 

Truth : Indian Air force didn't strike the terrorists camps.. they only threw bombs in empty barren lands which is an act of showing the strength & capabilities of IAF..

Hype : IAF killed more than 300 terrorists in their training camps located in the border under the direction & leadership of our strong Prime Minister ever Narendra Modi.. Revenge successful.. ( leaks to media by unconfirmed & fake govt sources via BJP IT  cell).

Logic : Why will the terrorists camps be located in such an easily accessible areas where IAF can strike? 

In case if it's a rare achievement by IAF then why did they wait until that long instead of firing first rather than just a retaliation act ?

Foreign media, UNO & Opp parties : Please release the video evidence of the strikes & casualties.

BJP Response : You are insulting Indian Army.. Anti-nationals, Anti-nationals..

[coca-cola]

😥

[JANASENA]

IAC air strikes edo uttutti yevvaram anukune edavalandariki ide naa samadhanam 

• NTRO surveillance revealed 300 active targets in Jaish camp days before IAF airstrike

 

Days before the Indian Air Force (IAF) carried out a major airstrike to eliminate a Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) training camp in Balakot, the National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO) revealed that there were 300 active mobile connections in the terror outfit's training facility in Balakot, reported news agency ANI.

[timmy]

sensible talk by this lady 

 

 

[mustang302]

45 minutes ago, JANASENA said:

IAC air strikes edo uttutti yevvaram anukune edavalandariki ide naa samadhanam 

• NTRO surveillance revealed 300 active targets in Jaish camp days before IAF airstrike

 

Days before the Indian Air Force (IAF) carried out a major airstrike to eliminate a Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) training camp in Balakot, the National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO) revealed that there were 300 active mobile connections in the terror outfit's training facility in Balakot, reported news agency ANI.

Vallu 300 annaru ani mana army kooda 300/ 300 ni sampesindhi ani thighs slapping kadha..😂

[JANASENA]

19 minutes ago, mustang302 said:

Vallu 300 annaru ani mana army kooda 300/ 300 ni sampesindhi ani thighs slapping kadha..😂

AC rooms lo korchuni maname decide cheyyali vallu enthamandini samparo. I already told you nee nunchi intha kantey manchi post expect cheyyalemani. 😂

[mustang302]

21 minutes ago, JANASENA said:

AC rooms lo korchuni maname decide cheyyali vallu enthamandini samparo. I already told you nee nunchi intha kantey manchi post expect cheyyalemani. 😂

Andhukae defend chesukoleni post veyyakoodadhu..😂300.

[AndhraneedSCS]

I hope government will atleast come up with figures/pictures rather than flagging every one as anti national

 

In India we have media support but in International media the coverage is telling a different story 

[mustang302]

Just now, AndhraneedSCS said:

I hope government will atleast come up with figures/pictures rather than flagging every one as anti national

 

In India we have media support but in International media the coverage is telling a different story 

They just hate India, emantav " teacup"😂300

[Ara_Tenkai]

then jaish e mmd  brother indian attac nijame ani enduku nnadu in a news released to pak press... they have claimed it to be real... its too confusing...

[Kool_SRG]

5 minutes ago, AndhraneedSCS said:

I hope government will atleast come up with figures/pictures rather than flagging every one as anti national

 

In India we have media support but in International media the coverage is telling a different story 

Defence minister already opened up today there is no such information on count of casuality ani..

[Kool_SRG]

Defence Minister Breaks Silence on Death Toll of Balakot Air Strikes, Says No Number to Give Out

This is the first time that a senior minister has come on record to say that there was no official death toll in the Indian Air Force strike on JeM camp in Pakistan.

New Delhi: A day after Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa said the IAF cannot give an exact figure of those killed in the air strikes on a Jaish-e-Mohammed camp in Pakistan, defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman also said there was no number to give out.

This is the first time that a senior minister has come on record to say that there was no official death toll. The government’s radio silence amid the mounting speculation had been questioned in various quarters, including by the opposition parties.

 

 

 

The defence minister’s statement is also an embarrassment for the BJP as its party chief, Amit Shah, had claimed two days ago that at least 250 terrorists were killed in the air strike on the terror camp in Balakot.
 

 

“Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale had not given any casualty figure in the airstrike and he had only given a statement, which was the government's position,” Sitharaman told reporters, a week after the IAF breached Pakistani air space for the first time since 1971 and targeted the camps.
 

 

Gokhale had addressed a press conference hours after the strike, giving the first official government reaction on it. He had said that several Jaish leaders, commanders and trainers were killed, but had not given an exact figure.

Sitharaman also said the bombing of the Jaish site was "not a military action" as there was no damage to civilians.

“It was based on intelligence inputs on terrorist activities in Pakistan, to be unleashed against India. It was not a military action,” she said, adding that there was no relationship between the airstrike and elections.

Sitharaman's remarks come amidst the Opposition seeking details of the death toll in the airstrike, even as the IAF, which carried out the attacks post the Pulwama suicide bombing, said on Monday the Centre would provide details on the casualty figures.

Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa on Monday said the IAF only focusses on whether targets are hit or not and doesn’t count the number of the dead.

[Mitron]

Lite

[perugu_vada]

21 minutes ago, Kool_SRG said:

Defence Minister Breaks Silence on Death Toll of Balakot Air Strikes, Says No Number to Give Out

This is the first time that a senior minister has come on record to say that there was no official death toll in the Indian Air Force strike on JeM camp in Pakistan.

New Delhi: A day after Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa said the IAF cannot give an exact figure of those killed in the air strikes on a Jaish-e-Mohammed camp in Pakistan, defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman also said there was no number to give out.

This is the first time that a senior minister has come on record to say that there was no official death toll. The government’s radio silence amid the mounting speculation had been questioned in various quarters, including by the opposition parties.

 

 

 

The defence minister’s statement is also an embarrassment for the BJP as its party chief, Amit Shah, had claimed two days ago that at least 250 terrorists were killed in the air strike on the terror camp in Balakot.
 

 

“Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale had not given any casualty figure in the airstrike and he had only given a statement, which was the government's position,” Sitharaman told reporters, a week after the IAF breached Pakistani air space for the first time since 1971 and targeted the camps.
 

 

Gokhale had addressed a press conference hours after the strike, giving the first official government reaction on it. He had said that several Jaish leaders, commanders and trainers were killed, but had not given an exact figure.

Sitharaman also said the bombing of the Jaish site was "not a military action" as there was no damage to civilians.

“It was based on intelligence inputs on terrorist activities in Pakistan, to be unleashed against India. It was not a military action,” she said, adding that there was no relationship between the airstrike and elections.

Sitharaman's remarks come amidst the Opposition seeking details of the death toll in the airstrike, even as the IAF, which carried out the attacks post the Pulwama suicide bombing, said on Monday the Centre would provide details on the casualty figures.

Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa on Monday said the IAF only focusses on whether targets are hit or not and doesn’t count the number of the dead.

End of story