By Islamuddin Sajid and Aamir Latif
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan
Pakistan army on Wednesday claimed that the country’s air force has shot down two Indian fighter jets that crossed into Pakistani territory amid escalating tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbors.
Pakistani forces engaged with six targets at the Line of Control (LOC) -- a de facto border that divides the disputed Kashmir Valley between the two countries -- and shot down the Indian aircraft when they crossed into Pakistani territory, Pakistan army spokesman Maj. Gen. Asif Ghafoor said.
"One of the aircraft fell inside AJ&K [Pakistan-administered Kashmir] while other fell inside IOK," he said in a Twitter post, referring to the Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir.
The Pakistan army spokesman, initially said two Indian pilots were arrested, one in injured condition, but later during the day changed his statement saying only one pilot had been arrested.
"No human life was affected during our action, we shot the target in an open space," the army spokesman said, adding that they were only acting in self defense and urged for dialogue to ensure peace in the region.
Responding to a question regarding today's top security meeting and possible use of nuclear weapons, the Pakistani official rejected the option, saying: "I have always said we must not talk about this, it’s insane to talk about this."
In a statement, the Pakistan Foreign Ministry urged India to give "peace a chance and to resolve issues like a mature democratic nation."
Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday offered a dialogue to India to quell the mounting escalation between the two countries.
In a televised address to the nation, Khan said his country was forced to take action against Indian jets as “no sovereign country can allow the other to act like a judge, jury and executor altogether."
India responds
India confirmed it had lost one of its aircraft and said a pilot was missing in action, adding that they have downed one Pakistani jet.
“One Pakistan Air Force fighter aircraft was shot down by a MiG 21 Bison of the Indian Air Force […] In this engagement, we have unfortunately lost one MiG 21. The pilot is missing in action. Pakistan has claimed that he is in their custody. We are ascertaining the facts,” said Raveesh Kumar, spokesman for Indian External Affairs Ministry.
"Pakistan has used its air force to target military installations on the Indian side. Due to our high state of readiness and alertness, Pakistan’s attempts were foiled successfully,” Kumar added.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday chaired a high-level security meeting attended by the chiefs of the army, navy and air force, where he was briefed about the situation in Jammu and Kashmir and along the LOC, news agency Press Trust of India reported.
Meanwhile, a joint statement by 21 Indian opposition parties expressed their “deep anguish” over politicisation of the armed forces’ sacrifices by the ruling party.
"National security must transcend narrow political considerations. The leaders observed that the prime minister has, regrettably, not convened an all-party meeting as per the established practice in our democracy,” a statement issued by the opposition said Wednesday.***
The Indian Ministry of External Affairs summoned the acting high commissioner of Pakistan to its office to lodge a strong protest over the incidents at the LOC.
There were reports early Wednesday morning of a third crash of an Indian military chopper in Budgam area of Indian-administered Kashmir, which claimed the lives of all six air force personnel on board and one civilian, Indian broadcaster NDTV said.
Transport affected
A red alert was issued for the New Delhi metro network that sees a huge footfall every day.
Earlier in the day, several airports close to the Indian border were temporarily shut.
Meanwhile, Pakistan announced that flight operations at all the airports will remain shut until Thursday.
Tensions between the two nuclear neighbors have escalated after a suicide bombing in Jammu and Kashmir that killed more than 40 Indian paramilitary troops on Feb. 14.
The Jaish-e-Mohammad (JEM) militant group claimed responsibility for the attack, which India said had headquarters in Pakistan, a charge Islamabad denied.
Indian jets intruded into Pakistan's airspace on early Tuesday in a what it called a “preemptive action” killing "several terrorists" on a camp of JEM, a group that had been listed as terrorist organization by Islamabad in 2002.
The Pakistani civil and military officials have rejected the claim.
Jammu and Kashmir, a Muslim-majority Himalayan region, is held by India and Pakistan in parts and claimed by both in full. A small sliver of Kashmir is also held by China.
Since they were partitioned in 1947, the two countries have fought three wars -- in 1948, 1965 and 1971 -- two of them over Kashmir.
*Shuriah Niazi in New Delhi, Aadil Ahmed in Chandigarh and Zahid Rafiq in Srinagar contributed to this story
