India accidentally fires missile at Pakistan: ‘Sorry’ | Abroad

The incident happened two days ago, according to the statement of the Government of India† The missile landed on Pakistani territory. “While the incident is deeply regrettable, it is also a relief that no lives were lost.” The country has “seriously looked at the accident” and is investigating the firing of the missile, the statement concludes.

According to Pakistan, the missile was fired from near the Indian city of Sirsa and eventually – after 124 kilometers across Pakistani territory – ended up at the city of Mian Channu, in the east of the country. “The route of this object endangered many domestic and international flights in the skies of both countries, as well as the lives of people on the ground,” an army spokesman said during his explanation on national television.

^{Read on below the photo.}

India only released its statement after neighboring country and nemesis Pakistan had already furiously shouted that the incident could have ‘unpleasant consequences’. Pakistan’s government had summoned India’s chargé d’affaires in the capital Islamabad to protest “the unprovoked violation of its airspace.” India was instructed to take measures to prevent incidents like this in the future and to share the results of the investigation.

Pakistani government security adviser Moeed Yusuf tweeted that India’s story was “hard to believe”. “It took India two days to accept that the missile was theirs,” he wrote. Yusuf calls on the international community not to turn a blind eye to the incident and it is also necessary to investigate whether the push of the button was ‘really accidental’ and ‘not on purpose’.

He called the neighboring country “very irresponsible” for not immediately informing Pakistan after the missile was fired.

^{Read on below the tweets.}

The neighboring countries have a violent history together and their relationship is often strained. They have already fought three wars and other military clashes are also numerous. For example, in 2019 both countries carried out air strikes in the border area.

Moreover, both countries are so-called nuclear powers. The presence of the nuclear weapons in the background is always palpable.

“Given the incident…India and Pakistan need to talk about how to mitigate the risks,” military expert Ayesha Siddiqa wrote on Twitter. ‘What if such incidents happen again and with greater consequences?’

Watch our news videos in the playlist below: