URI SURGICAL STRIKE

At around 5:30 a.m. on 18 September, four militants attacked an Indian Army brigade headquarters in Uri, near the Line of Control in a pre-dawn ambush. They were said to have lobbed 17 grenades in three minutes. As a rear administrative base camp with tents caught fire, 17 army personnel were killed during the attack. An additional 19-30 soldiers were reported to have been injured. A gun battle ensued lasting six hours, during which all the four militants were killed.[4][6][22][23][24] Combing operations continued to flush out additional terrorists thought to be alive.[10]
Most of the soldiers killed were from the 10th battalion, Dogra Regiment (10 Dogra) and 6th battalion, Bihar Regiment (6 Bihar).[24] One of the injured soldiers succumbed to his injuries on 19 September at RR Hospital in New Delhi, followed by another soldier on 24 September, bringing the death toll to 19.[2][3][25]
The casualties were primarily believed to have occurred as a result of non-fire retardant transition tents. This was the time of a troops shift, whereby troops from 6 Bihar were replacing troops from 10 Dogra. The incoming troops were housed in tents, which are normally avoided in sensitive areas around the LOC like Uri. The attackers sneaked into the camp breaching heavy security and seemed to know exactly where to strike. Seven of the personnel killed were support staff, including cooks and barbers.[26][27]


Postponement of SAARC summit[edit]

In the wake of the attack, India cancelled its participation in the 19th SAARC summit to be held in November in Islamabad, Pakistan. The Ministry of External Affairs issued a statement, saying, "India has conveyed to current SAARC Chair Nepal that increasing cross-border terrorist attacks in the region and growing interference in the internal affairs of Member States by one country have created an environment that is not conducive to the successful holding of the 19th SAARC Summit in Islamabad in November 2016." "In the prevailing circumstances, the Government of India is unable to participate in the proposed Summit in Islamabad", the statement said.[32]
On India withdrawing from the scheduled SAARC summit in Islamabad, Pakistan's Foreign Office termed the withdrawal "unfortunate", and posted a rejoinder stating: "As for the excuse used by India, the world knows that it is India that has been perpetrating and financing terrorism in Pakistan." The statement included a reference to Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav, detained by Pakistan for espionage, and accused India of violating international laws by interfering inside Pakistan.[33]
Later, Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Bhutan also withdrew from the summit.[34][35] On 30 September 2016, Pakistan stated that the summit scheduled for November 9 and 10 in Islamabad would be held on an alternative date.[36]

Indian retaliation[edit]

See also: 2016 Indian Line of Control strike
On September 29, eleven days after the attack, the Indian Army conducted retaliatory "surgical strikes" on what it termed "launch-pads" used by militants in Pakistan-administered Kashmir.[37][38] Indian Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) Lt Gen Ranbir Singh said that it had made a preemptive strike against "terrorist teams" who were preparing to "carry out infiltration and conduct terrorist strikes inside Jammu and Kashmir and in various metros in other states".[39] The Economist reported that small teams of Indian commandos crossed the Line of Control and struck at the safe houses, killing about a dozen militants.[37]

Bilateral boycott[edit]

Following the uproar after the Uri attack, Indian Motion Picture Producers Association (IMPPA) decided to ban all Pakistani actors, actresses and technicians working in India till the situation returns to normal.[40]Bollywood artists were divided towards the ban with some justifying it while some questioning its benefits.[41] Indian TV entertainment channel, Zindagi announced discontinuation of showcasing Pakistani TV shows on the channel.[42] The Pakistani government responded in October with a blanket ban on all Indian television and radio programming in Pakistan.[43]
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), the national governing body for cricket in India, ruled out the possibility of reviving bilateral cricket ties with Pakistan in the near future.[44] BCCI also asked the International Cricket Council (ICC) to not group Indian and Pakistan cricket teams together in international tournaments, keeping in mind border tensions between the two countries.[45] Badminton Association of India, the governing body for badminton in India, decided to boycott the Pakistan International Series scheduled to be held in Islamabad in October, as an act of "solidarity" with the government's diplomatic offensive against Pakistan.[46]















Comments

Post a Comment