ISLAMABAD:
Pakistan will not be intimidated, and all hostile attempts to undermine the country’s counterterrorism efforts will be decisively thwarted, stated Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir on Friday. He condemned India’s “illegal and legally baseless hydro terrorism” and called for a peaceful resolution of the Kashmir issue to ensure strategic stability in South Asia.
The army chief expressed these views during his visit to the Command and Staff College in Quetta, where he addressed student officers and faculty, discussing operational readiness, regional stability, and Pakistan’s national security framework.
“Pakistan’s adversaries will fail in their efforts to divert us from our counterterrorism mission,” Field Marshal Munir declared, as reported by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR). He emphasized the nation’s unity in defending its sovereignty and stressed the importance of resolving the internationally recognized Kashmir dispute through peaceful means.
These remarks come in the backdrop of rising tensions between Pakistan and India following a deadly attack in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) at Pahalgam, which killed 26 people, mostly tourists. India accused Pakistan without providing evidence, triggering a series of military confrontations that escalated into full-scale cross-border conflict.
India’s military action was met with a precise Pakistani response under Operation Bunyanum Marsoos, which targeted Indian air bases, ammunition stores, and missile sites along and beyond the Line of Control. This was part of a larger campaign, Marka-e-Haq, conducted between May 7 and May 10.
Honoring the martyrs of the operation, the COAS said the Pakistani people had formed a “wall of steel” under national leadership. “Marka-e-Haq demonstrates our determination, unity, and complete coordination among all national forces,” he stated. “Divine support comes to those nations that uphold the truth and fight with solidarity.”
Highlighting the evolving nature of modern warfare, the COAS affirmed Pakistan’s readiness to respond to all forms of conflict. He also criticized India’s increasing tendency toward unprovoked military aggression, warning that strategic stability in South Asia remains fragile and depends largely on justice, particularly in Kashmir.
