Pakistan blames India for vehicle blast that kills seven soldiers
ISLAMABAD: Seven Pakistan army soldiers were killed on Tuesday (May 6) when their vehicle was targeted by an improvised explosive device, Pakistan's military said, blaming arch rival India for the attack.
Ties between the two nations have been strained since the Apr 22 attack in Indian Kashmir that targeted Hindu tourists, killing 26. India accused Pakistan of involvement, saying two of the three suspected attackers were Pakistani nationals.
Islamabad has denied the accusation but says it is fully prepared to defend itself in case of attack, prompting world powers to call for a calming of tension.
Pakistan's military said members of the Baloch Liberation Army, which it described as an "Indian proxy", targeted its vehicle with an improvised explosive device in the restive southwestern province of Balochistan.
The BLA is the strongest of a number of insurgent groups operating in the area bordering Afghanistan and Iran, a mineral-rich region that is home to Beijing's investment in Gwadar deep water port and other projects.
India's foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the statement.
The rivals have announced a slew of measures against each other, from suspending trade and a key water treaty to closing their airspace and reducing embassy staff.
On Monday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres emphasised the need to avoid a military confrontation that could "easily spin out of control".
"Now is the time for maximum restraint, and stepping back from the brink," he said.
UN Security Council members were briefed on the situation in the region and told of intelligence indicating an "imminent threat" of action by India, Pakistan's foreign ministry said, referring to the council's meeting on Monday in New York.
"They called for dialogue and diplomacy to diffuse tension and avoid military confrontation ... and to peacefully resolve issues," the ministry said in a statement.
CIVIL DEFENCE DRILLS
Pakistan has held two missile tests in three days and India has unveiled plans for civil defence drills to be conducted in several states on Wednesday, from sounding air raid sirens to evacuation plans.
On Tuesday, Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, along with the deputy prime minister, foreign and defence ministers, and the military chiefs visited the headquarters of its top ISI spy agency.
Pakistan is currently a non-permanent member of the Security Council. India is not, but New Delhi has been in talks with council members ahead of Monday's meeting.
An Indian source familiar with the discussion said many members expressed concern that Pakistan's missile tests and nuclear rhetoric were "escalatory" factors.
"Pakistan's efforts to internationalise the situation also failed," said the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity. "They were advised to sort out the issues bilaterally with India."
Muslim-majority Kashmir is claimed in full by both Hindu-majority India and Islamic Pakistan, although each controls only a part of the Himalayan region. They have fought two wars over Kashmir and New Delhi accuses Pakistan of backing an uprising in Indian Kashmir that started in 1989 but has now waned.
Pakistan says it only offers diplomatic and moral support to a Kashmiri demand for self-determination.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNA
5 hours ago
- CNA
Russia's new drone strikes hit Kyiv, maternity ward in Odesa, Ukraine says
KYIV: Russia launched another large drone attack on Ukraine, striking Kyiv and damaging a maternity ward in the southern port of Odesa, regional officials said early on Tuesday (Jun 10). The overnight attacks follow Russia's biggest drone strike on Ukraine on Monday - part of intensified operations that Moscow said were retaliatory measures for Kyiv's recent brazen attacks inside Russia. Medics were called to four districts of Kyiv a couple hours after midnight on Tuesday, including the historic Podil neighbourhood, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on the Telegram messaging app. The military said the strikes were still ongoing and urged people to seek bomb shelters. The full scale of the attack was not immediately clear. "Enemy drones are simultaneously attacking several districts of the city," Timur Tkachenko, head of Kyiv's military administration said on the Telegram messaging app. "There is damage to residential buildings and fires. Rescuers are working at the sites." Reuters' witnesses heard a series of loud explosions throughout the city. In the southern port of Odesa, a "massive" drone attack targeted an emergency medical building and a maternity ward, as well as residential buildings, Oleh Kiper, governor of the broader Odesa region said on Telegram. Regarding the maternity hospital there were no casualties and patients and staff were evacuated, Kiper said. He posted photos of broken windows in what looked like a medical facility and of damages to facades of several buildings. Both sides deny targeting civilians in the war that Russia launched against Ukraine more than three years ago. But thousands of civilians have been killed in the conflict, the chief majority of them Ukrainian.
CNA
19 hours ago
- CNA
Don't let deep sea become 'wild west', UN chief tells world leaders
NICE: United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres said on Monday (Jun 9) the world could not let the deepest oceans "become the wild west", at the start in France of a global summit on the seas. World leaders are attending the UN Ocean Conference in Nice as nations tussle over contentious rules on mining the seabed for critical minerals and the terms of a global treaty on plastic pollution. US President Donald Trump has brought urgency to the debate around deep-sea mining, moving to fast-track US exploration in international waters and sidestepping global efforts to regulate the nascent sector. The International Seabed Authority, which has jurisdiction over the ocean floor outside national waters, is meeting in July to discuss a global mining code to regulate mining in the ocean depths. Guterres said he supported these negotiations and urged caution as countries navigate these "new waters on seabed mining". "The deep sea cannot become the wild west," he said, to applause from the plenary floor. Many countries oppose seabed mining, and France is hoping more nations in Nice will join a moratorium until more is known about the ecological impacts of the practice. French President Emmanuel Macron said a moratorium on deep-sea mining was "an international necessity". "I think it's madness to launch predatory economic action that will disrupt the deep seabed, disrupt biodiversity, destroy it and release irrecoverable carbon sinks - when we know nothing about it," the French president said. The deep sea, Greenland and Antarctica were "not for sale", he said in follow-up remarks to thunderous applause. Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva called for "clear action" from the seabed authority to end a "predatory race" among nations seeking critical minerals on the ocean floor. "We now see the threat of unilateralism looming over the ocean. We cannot allow what happened to international trade to happen to the sea," he said. WAVE OF COMMITMENTS Macron said a global pact to protect marine life in international waters had received enough support to become law and was "a done deal". The high seas treaty struck in 2023 requires ratifications from 60 signatory countries to enter into force, something France hoped to achieve before Nice. Macron said about 50 nations had ratified the treaty and 15 others had formally committed to joining them. This "allows us to say that the high seas treaty will be implemented," he said. Other commitments are expected on Monday in Nice, where around 60 heads of state and government have joined thousands of business leaders, scientists and civil society activists. On Monday, the United Kingdom is expected to announce a partial ban on bottom trawling in half its marine protected areas, putting the destructive fishing method squarely on the summit agenda. Bottom trawling involves huge fishing nets indiscriminately dragging the ocean floor, a process shockingly captured in a recent documentary by British naturalist David Attenborough. Macron said on Saturday that France would restrict trawling in some of its marine protected areas, but was criticised by environment groups for not going far enough. WORDS INTO ACTION On Sunday, French environment minister Agnes Pannier-Runacher hinted at "important announcements" in Nice about the creation of new marine protected areas. Samoa led the way this past week, announcing that 30 per cent of its national waters would be under protection with the creation of nine marine parks. Just 8 per cent of global oceans are designated for marine conservation, despite a globally agreed target to achieve 30 per cent coverage by 2030. But even fewer are considered truly protected, as some countries impose next to no rules on what is forbidden in marine zones or lack the finance to enforce any regulations. Nations will face calls to cough up the missing finance for ocean protection. Small island states are expected in numbers at the summit to demand money and political support to combat rising seas, marine trash and the plunder of fish stocks. The summit will not produce a legally binding agreement at its close like a climate COP or treaty negotiation. But diplomats and other observers said it could mark a much-needed turning point in global ocean conservation if leaders rose to the occasion.
Straits Times
a day ago
- Straits Times
Don't let deep sea become ‘wild west', Guterres tells world leaders
World leaders are attending the UN Ocean Conference in Nice as nations tussle over contentious rules on mining the seabed for critical minerals. PHOTO: AFP United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres said on June 9 the world could not let the deepest oceans 'become the wild west', at the start in France of a global summit on the seas. World leaders are attending the UN Ocean Conference in Nice as nations tussle over contentious rules on mining the seabed for critical minerals and the terms of a global treaty on plastic pollution. US President Donald Trump has brought urgency to the debate around deep-sea mining, moving to fast-track US exploration in international waters and sidestepping global efforts to regulate the nascent sector. The International Seabed Authority, which has jurisdiction over the ocean floor outside national waters, is meeting in July to discuss a global mining code to regulate mining in the ocean depths. Mr Guterres said he supported these negotiations and urged caution as countries navigate these 'new waters on seabed mining'. 'The deep sea cannot become the wild west,' he said, to applause from the plenary floor. Many countries oppose seabed mining, and France is hoping more nations in Nice will join a moratorium until more is known about the ecological impacts of the practice. French President Emmanuel Macron said a moratorium on deep-sea mining was 'an international necessity'. Wave of commitments 'I think it's madness to launch predatory economic action that will disrupt the deep seabed, disrupt biodiversity, destroy it and release irrecoverable carbon sinks – when we know nothing about it,' the French president said. The deep sea, Greenland and Antarctica were 'not for sale', he said in follow-up remarks to thunderous applause. Mr Macron said a global treaty to govern the high seas had received enough ratifications to enter into force and was 'a done deal', without specifying a timeline. The agreement struck in 2023 required ratifications from 60 signatory countries to become international law and Mr Macron said the numbers 'had been reached, which allows us to say that the high seas treaty will be implemented'. Other commitments on ocean conservation are expected on June 9 in Nice, where around 60 heads of state and government will join thousands of business leaders, scientists and civil society activists. On June 9, Britain is expected to announce a partial ban on bottom trawling in half its marine protected areas, putting the destructive fishing method squarely on the summit agenda. Bottom trawling sees huge fishing nets dragged across the ocean floor, sweeping up everything in their path, a process shockingly captured in a recent documentary by British naturalist David Attenborough. Greenpeace welcomed Britain's announcement on trawling but said in a statement it was 'long overdue'. Words into action Mr Macron said on June 7 that France would restrict trawling in some of its marine protected areas but was criticised by environment groups for not going far enough. French environment minister Agnes Pannier-Runacher told reporters on June 8 that other countries would make 'important announcements' about the creation of new marine protected areas. Samoa led the way this past week, announcing that 30 per cent of its national waters would be under protection with the creation of nine marine parks. Just eight per cent of global oceans are designated for marine conservation, despite a globally agreed target to achieve 30 per cent coverage by 2030. But even fewer are considered truly protected, as some countries impose next to no rules on what is forbidden in marine zones or lack the finance to enforce any regulations. Nations will face calls to cough up the missing finance for ocean protection, which is the least funded of all the UN's 17 sustainable development goals. Small island states are expected in numbers at the summit to demand money and political support to combat rising seas, marine trash and the plunder of fish stocks. The summit will not produce a legally binding agreement at its close like a climate COP or treaty negotiation. But diplomats and other observers said it could mark a much-needed turning point in global ocean conservation if leaders rose to the occasion. 'The UN Ocean Conference gives us all an opportunity to turn words into bold and ambitious action,' said P rofessor Enric Sala , founder of ocean conservation group Pristine Seas. AFP Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
