'What the hell happened?' Pak ceasefire violation leaves Jammu stunned
A blackout has also been imposed across Jammu district, which saw the first ceasefire violations occur around 7.30 PM in the Akhnoor and RS Pura sectors
Within two-and-a-half hours of India and Pakistan agreeing to a “full and immediate ceasefire” of armed escalation, beginning 17.00 hrs on May 10 (Saturday), several sectors along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir have reported massive artillery shelling and drone intrusions.
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A blackout has also been imposed across Jammu district, which saw the first ceasefire violations occur around 7.30 PM in the Akhnoor and RS Pura sectors. Soon after, locals from Arnia and Pargwal also reported “heavy artillery fire” by Pakistan while drones were seen zipping across the skies of Jammu city.
By 8.50 PM, similar reports of ceasefire violations by Pakistan began coming from Anantnag, Budgam, Srinagar and other parts of the Kashmir Valley too.
J&K CM's post on X
At 8.53 PM, a clearly shocked Omar Abdullah, chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir, posted on X, “What the hell just happened to the ceasefire? Explosions heard across Srinagar”. By 9.10 PM, Abdullah was back on X, sharing a video of alluding to the ceasefire violations by Pakistan and wrote, “This is no ceasefire. The air defence units in the middle of Srinagar just opened up.”
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The large-scale ceasefire violations were being responded to “adequately and proportionately” by the Indian Army, sources in the defence establishment across J&K told The Federal.
The announcement of the ceasefire had first come from US President Donald Trump at 5.33 PM. “After a long night of talks mediated by the United States, I am pleased to announce that India and Pakistan have agreed to a full and immediate ceasefire,” Trump had declared, even before the governments of India and Pakistan could make the decision public.
Official response awaited
At 6 PM, Vikram Misri, India’s foreign secretary, declared at a press conference in Delhi that the Directors General of Military Operations of India and Pakistan had spoken at 1535 hrs and agreed to an immediate ceasefire, beginning 1700 hrs on Saturday. Misri, however, did not share any further details about the terms agreed to by the two countries before announcing the ceasefire.
Shortly after Misri's interaction with the media, the Ministry of Defence too addressed the press in Delhi, asserting that while a ceasefire had been agreed upon, India would counter immediately and adequately any future escalations and misadventures by Pakistan.
An official response from the MEA or the Indian Armed Forces to the ceasefire violations by Pakistan is still awaited.
