Unexploded bombs stop Uri residents from returning home
Representative image
SRINAGAR: A pause in military action between India and Pakistan took hold Saturday evening along LoC in Kashmir's Uri sub-division, following days of heavy Pakistani shelling, drone attacks, and cross-border firing. However, hundreds displaced from border villages remained in shelters as security forces cleared unexploded ordnance Sunday.
J&K police urged evacuees not to return home, citing ongoing bomb disposal operations.
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Specialised teams are sweeping villages for unexploded shells, warning that remnants from attacks pose a serious threat.
'These dangerous devices can remain active for extended periods and may detonate with minimal disturbance, posing extreme danger to untrained people,' police said in a public safety notice. 'All citizens evacuated from frontline villages are advised to refrain from returning until official clearance is provided.'
Operations are expected to take several days depending on weather and contamination levels. 'Your safety remains our highest priority,' police added, stressing that unauthorised returns to restricted areas could lead to legal consequences.
District authorities have set up temporary shelters with food, medical supplies, and essential aid. Around 15,000 people fled villages such as Salamabad, Razarwani, Gingal, Lagama, and Banday in Uri sub-division in north Kashmir's Baramulla district. According to 2011 census, Uri's population stands at 74,867.
In Uri town, life began to stir Sunday morning. A few shops reopened and residents returned. By afternoon, authorities again instructed people to vacate. 'I came early morning from Baramulla. I opened my restaurant and hoped the situation would stabilise. But in the afternoon, we were told to return,' said Abdul Rashid, a restaurant owner who spent the night back in Baramulla.
Residents expressed cautious hope. 'We are happy there is an agreement. We are hopeful we will return home soon,' said a Uri resident at a relief centre in Baramulla.
Former CM and PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti visited shelter homes Sunday, meeting displaced residents. 'We don't know how our family was saved,' said a woman from Salamabad. 'We didn't sleep a minute Thursday night and moved to Baramulla after shells landed in our village.'
Mehbooba assured families she would urge govt to provide alternative housing and compensation. 'War, bullets, and shelling have stolen homes and shattered childhoods,' she said. 'In tin-roofed shelters, Kashmir's children wait — not for revenge, but for peace.'
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India Gazette
an hour ago
- India Gazette
"We support right of self-defence of each other": Israeli envoy on India's Operation Sindoor
New Delhi [India], June 13 (ANI): Israel's Ambassador to India, Reuven Azar, has expressed support for Operation Sindoor, which was launched by Indian Armed Forces on May 9, targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), saying that Israel and India support the right of self-defence of each other. In an exclusive Interview with ANI, Azar stated that Israel and India have been working together to deal with common threats when it comes to building capabilities. He emphasised that India and Israel have a relationship of trust, and it will deepen as the challenges faced by the two nations increase. When asked about he sees Operation Sindoor, he responded, 'First of all, as much as we are not part of the conflict between India and Pakistan, India is not a part of the conflict between Iran and Israel. And therefore, it is very natural that we will not be involved directly in conflicts that we are not involved in. On the other hand, I think that we support the right of self-defence of each other, and we've been working together to deal with common threats when it comes to the building of capabilities. So we consider ourselves close friends and allies, strategic partners, and we want to be in a situation where this cooperation continues. I'm sure it will continue because it benefits both countries. This is a relationship of trust. and this will only deepen because the challenges against us are only mounting.' In response to the April 22 Pahalgam terrorist attack, which claimed the lives of 26 people and injured several others, India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7. Indian Armed Forces targeted terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir, resulting in the deaths of over 100 terrorists linked to groups such as Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), and Hizbul Mujahideen (HM). Reuven Azar emphasised that nations are responding responsibly to Israel's action against Iran. He noted that Israel has shared intelligence with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), friends and Western powers and mentioned that they understand the 'ferocity and radicalism' coming from Iran. When asked about a perception that Israel is the aggressor following its strikes on Iran, Reuven Azar said, 'I haven't seen, I've seen the responses following what happened tonight. I think that many countries are responding in a very responsible way. Of course, they're in a situation of alarm and concern, but they haven't delegitimised our right to self-defence. I think the fact that we have shared intelligence, both with the IAEA and with other Western powers and other friends. People understand the ferocity and the radicalism coming from Iran, the fact that they have been doing all these activities to destroy us, and haven't seen condemnation so far. We are, of course, in touch with the Indian government as well, and we are coordinating briefs to our colleagues to present them with both the information we have and the action that we've taken.' Defending Israel's action against Iran, he stated that Israel has been acting very responsibly and has given many chances to Iran to retract from its policy. According to him, Iran intends to take Jerusalem and wants to control the Islamic world. Azar stated, 'I think that Israel has been acting very responsibly because we've been postponing this military action for a very long time. Iran has been given many, many chances to retract from this policy. They have been sanctioned, they've been negotiating with. We have seen many, many attempts by different countries in the world to try to divert Iran from this line of action, and the fact that we have reached this point is because it's an imminent moment that we couldn't continue living with, and therefore, we took action. I think people appreciate the degree of our restraint.' 'And I can tell you that many countries in the Arab world feel as threatened by Israel as Israel, if not more, because, you know, what the Iranians are doing is very clear for many countries. Iran wants to take Jerusalem, but it's only a stop on the way to Mecca and Medina. This is what they want to do. They want to control the Islamic world, and they have been attacking other countries in the past. Look what happened more than four years ago in Saudi Arabia when they directly attacked the oil production of Saudi Arabia. So, I think that Israel is actually supported, and people, even if they don't support, they understand why we are taking this action,' he added. He stressed that the international community is facing a challenge in dealing with rogue states and mentioned that the nations need to be more efficient in finding ways of dealing with them. When asked whether Israel understands India's apprehension with IAEA as Pakistan under its watch exchanged nuclear material for ballistic missile technology from North Korea, he responded, 'We have a problem with the success or lack of success of the international community in dealing with rogue states. When you want to generate world order and you put forward a series of agreements to create a code of conduct, and then some countries are abusing that, like Iraq, which, you know, cheated and tried to create a nuclear arsenal. Like Syria, under Assad, they cheated and worked to create a nuclear weapon. Like Libya, under Gaddafi, they did that. So, we have a challenge as an international community to deal with rogue states, and we have to be more efficient in finding ways of dealing with that, because if we fail, then we get to situations like we have today.' 'There have been countries assisting Iran in their nuclear program, the ballistic missile program, not only the country that you mentioned, but also North Korea and others. Israel is acting against an actor that has stated publicly time and again that it wants to annihilate us and has acted, taken action to attack us through their proxies. That is Iran. That's why we are acting against Iran and not against other countries, ' he added. Earlier in the day, Israel Defence Minister Israel Katz said that Israel began a preemptive strike against Iran on Friday, as per The Times of Israel. He declared an emergency across the country due to Israel's action in Iran. 'Following the State of Israel's preemptive strike against Iran, a missile and drone attack against the State of Israel and its civilian population is expected in the immediate future,' The Times of Israel quoted Katz as saying. Katz said that he signed 'a special order, according to which a special state of emergency will be imposed in the home front throughout the entire State of Israel.' 'You must obey the instructions of the Home Front Command and the authorities and remain in the protected areas,' Katz added, as per The Times of Israel. Sirens wailed across Israel as the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened his security cabinet, as Israel began the airstrikes. (ANI)
India.com
2 hours ago
- India.com
Omar Abdullah, Mehbooba Mufti Question Worlds Silence On Israels Attack On Iran
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah voiced his concerns regarding international community's silence over Israel's military actions against Iran. Drawing parallels to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Omar said 'Today, Israel did what Russia did in Ukraine. But when Israel attacks Iran, these powers—whether it's America, Europe, or anyone else—become silent, and when same thing is done by Russia against Ukraine these powers get united against Russia'. Questioning the justification for the military strike, Abdullah said, 'As far as I know, Iran didn't give any reason to be attacked. This looks like a pre-emptive strike. And if the world's powers remain silent on this, it's a very sad thing.' Like Omar Abdullah PDP Chief Mehbooba Mufti too rose questions on world community she wrote on X 'Israel's attack on Iran is yet another brazen act by a state that appears to have gone rogue. The silence of the global community particularly Western powers led by the United States is both alarming and telling. This silence amounts to tacit approval. In the case of India-Pakistan tensions, the U.S. never fails to assert that its intervention has been crucial in preventing escalation." "Yet when it comes to Israel's relentless bombardment of Gaza or its latest strike on Iran that same urgency is conspicuously missing. These glaring double standards endangers global peace and stability. Equally disturbing is the deafening silence of the so-called Muslim countries, which remain shamelessly non-existent in the face of such grave injustice. Their inaction is not just disappointing it's a betrayal of the very causes they claim to stand for," it added. Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah also expressed his condolences following a tragic incident involving a Dreamliner aircraft that fell from the sky shortly after takeoff in Ahmedabad. While speaking to reporters in Srinagar, Abdullah said that all passengers and crew lost their lives, with only one person fortunate enough to survive. Abdullah extended his solidarity to the families affected by the incident, emphasizing the need for a thorough investigation.
News18
2 hours ago
- News18
Operation Sindoor And After: India Must Prepare For A Two-Front War
Last Updated: India should prepare for war not because it is imminent, but because peace must always be secured from a position of strength After Operation Sindoor, it has become abundantly clear that the spectre of a two-front war, where Pakistan and China work in tandem against us, is a reality that cannot be ignored anymore. The collaboration may not be overt, through a joint declaration of war, but the alliance of hostile congruence is undeniable. The idea of a collusive China-Pakistan military front against India is not new. Even before the ink dried on the Simla Agreement of 1972, Pakistan had begun cosying up to China. Their relationship, described over the years as 'higher than the mountains, deeper than the oceans", is not just a diplomatic aphorism. It is a strategic reality that has gained menacing proportions in the last two decades. The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a flagship of Xi Jinping's Belt and Road Initiative, snakes through territory India claims as its own—Gilgit-Baltistan. This project is not merely an infrastructure endeavour but a visible assertion of China's strategic intent in India's immediate periphery. Add to this, regular joint military exercises, arms sales, intelligence sharing, and even potential nuclear cooperation, and one begins to grasp the nature of the challenge that confronts us. There are those who argue that war is improbable, if not impossible, in the nuclear age. To them, the logic of mutual deterrence ensures peace. But history has shown that even nuclear-armed nations can engage in limited wars or protracted conflicts below the threshold of nuclear engagement. Kargil in 1999, Galwan in 2020, Uri in 2016, Balakot in 2019, and Operation Sindoor (2025) are reminders of this reality. Moreover, one cannot ignore that China is no longer the aloof continental power it once was. Under Xi Jinping, it has adopted an aggressive, almost imperial posture—whether in the South China Sea, Taiwan Strait, or along the Line of Actual Control with India. Its claims are expansive, its patience limited, and its contempt for the rules-based international order increasingly visible. On the other hand, Pakistan, emboldened by its nuclear arsenal and sustained by a military that acts with near impunity, has found in China not only a patron but also a strategic mentor. The two have aligned not only militarily but ideologically—in their contempt for India's rise and its civilisational model. The time has, therefore, come to actively prepare to deal with this scenario. National security cannot be a matter of episodic attention triggered by the next skirmish on the border or an election season. It requires sustained investment—intellectual, financial, and diplomatic. In other words, we need to put in place a national strategic and defence policy. What could be its possible elements? Expand alliances with like-minded nations. Strategic autonomy does not mean strategic solitude. The ability to balance our interests with Russia and America is particularly important. Both are important sources of defence supplies. Simultaneously, we must strengthen Quad partnerships, further improve ties with ASEAN, and maintain a functional dialogue with China. Equally, we need to accelerate our ongoing defence indigenisation while selectively sourcing cutting-edge technologies from allies. We must also Invest much more in cyber and space defence, where the wars of the future will be shaped before the first bullet is fired. Our efforts to upgrade our border defence infrastructure must be urgently expedited. Finally, we must ensure internal political stability and social harmony. A nation divided within, cannot be united without. While pursuing the above, there is no need for paranoia. We have certain undeniable strengths, and both Pakistan and China have their obvious weaknesses. Pakistan is a nation on the verge of implosion. It is politically unstable—a sham democracy, ostensibly ruled by an unpopular civilian government, but actually run by an army junta that is fast losing credibility. It is also financially bankrupt, running on international doles, most of which goes to pay off old debts. It is internally facing secessionist threats, including unrest in Balochistan and POK. Its most popular leader is languishing in jail, and his party is under shackles. China's economy is lagging, internal resentments over unemployment are growing, and it lacks the safety valve of a democracy. Moreover, under Xi Jinping, its imperialist posture is creating an increasingly cohesive international pushback. Allying with a failed and unstable state like Pakistan could prove to be a proposition with diminishing returns for the Chinese. As against the above, India is a democratic country with close to 1.5 billion people, the fastest growing economy in the globe, and a nuclear power with one of the finest armed forces in the world. It is also one of the world's largest emerging markets, and an entrepreneurial hub. Yet, India must prepare for a two-front war. Not because war is imminent, but because peace must always be secured from a position of strength. For in the end, as Kautilya wrote in the Arthashastra: 'He who is prepared, is the master of his own destiny.' The writer is a former diplomat, an author, and a politician. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18's views. Location : New Delhi, India, India First Published: June 13, 2025, 17:16 IST News opinion Opinion | Operation Sindoor And After: India Must Prepare For A Two-Front War
