Pakistan reserves the right to defend itself: Jalil Abbas Jilani

WASHINGTON (92 News) – Pakistan's Ambassador to the United States Jalil Abbas Jilani has on Sunday while rejecting the Indian claim of surgical strikes said that India is calling the incident of firing on Line of Control (LoC) as surgical strikes in order to satisfy its people. In an interview with an American media house, he said that Pakistan wants peace and doesn’t want increasing tensions between the nuclear arch rivals but also reserves the right to defend itself. The ambassador said that Pakistan has the capability to fully respond to any aggression against its soil. “We are in touch with the White House and US administration regarding the current situation,” the envoy added. Jilani said that the charges of aiding militants on Pakistan are unfounded, adding that the country’s armed forces are taking action against all terrorist groups including Haqqani without any discrimination and the extremist network has been destroyed in the Operation Zarb-e-Azb. The envoy said that over 4000 terrorists have been killed in Operation Zarb-e-Azb. “Pakistan is also fighting a battle against the proxies of cold war,” he said. Pakistan's Ambassador to the US said India has violated the charter of SAARC by refusing to attend the meeting in Islamabad. Earlier, Indian Director General Military Operations (DGMO) Lieutenant-General Ranbir Singh claimed that the Indian army conducted surgical strikes on the Line of Control (LoC) inflicting significant damage across the border. Addressing a press conference, Indian DGMO Lt Gen Ranbir Singh said that Pakistan had been informed about the strikes and that India has no intention of continuing the operations but is ready for any reaction from the Pakistan. The announcement of the strikes came after a meeting of the Indian cabinet committee on Security led by PM Modi.