Some common Pakistanis took to Twitter to confirm that the place targeted in Balakot by the Indian Air Force was, in fact, a camp run by Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) terror outfit and said that nobody will “publicly verify (it) for obvious reasons”.
“So a friend from the area has confirmed that madressa Taleem-ul-Quran (its board says run by Hazrat Maulana Masood Azhar) at Mansehra (Balakot) was hit, and there are ~10 ambulances around. But the area is now sealed. Local students told him, ziada nahi marai bachatt hogae,” read a post from a Pakistani Twitter user by the name Syed.
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He even shared a photograph of the board of the camp, which was run by JeM in Balakot.
“For folks questioning my sanity: this was the madressa that was hit. Nobody from the area will publicly verify for obvious reasons. It’s sealed, so casualties won’t be known unless we open it to journalists. For now, this is as close to truth as we can get,” the user added.
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A Pakistani journalist, named Fahad Desmukh, also shared a quote of JeM leader Abdul Rauf Asghar from an April 2018 event at the camp in Balakot.
“‘The youths of this madrasa have broken the arrogance of the Kashmiri mountains and have lit the torch of Jihad there, and will keep it alight,’ -JeM leader Abdul Rauf Asghar speaking in April 2018 at #Balakot madrasa targeted by India yesterday,” Desmukh tweeted.
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In another post, the Pakistani reporter said, “A quick Google of the madrasa’s name brought up the Al Qalam article from Mar/April 2018 about an event at the madrasa in Jaba attended by Yusuf Azhar, and several other JeM “famous jihadi leaders” who gave speeches glorifying jihadist ideology.”
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He added, “This is pretty damning if confirmed. Even though we know JeM continues to be patronised by the state, here is a concrete example of a JeM madrasa being run openly and glorifying ‘jihadi’ ideology for Kashmir. Why should our people and soldiers die to save JeM militants?”
Quoting an alleged Wikileaks 2004 documents, a Pakistani user by the name YaroNaan tweeted, “Detainee received training in Balakot, PK, allocation known to house a training camp that offers both basic and advanced terrorist trainingon explosives and artillery. Detainee is a probable member of the JEM and as such.”
Another Pakistan-based journalist Mosharraf Zaidi tweeted, “Pakistan was attacked yesterday by a dangerous and unhinged hegemonic power that enjoys the support of the wider international community. Would such brazen violations of Pakistan be possible if JeM and LeT did not enjoy voice, visibility & salience?”
In another post, he added, “Yesterday, India’s attack on Pakistan did not merit gloating. Today, Pakistan’s defensive measures also do not merit gloating. Adult Pakistanis & Indians should be propagating restraint, not cheerleading war. The ladder gets steeper from here. May Allah protect us all.”
On February 26, India carried out air strikes on a terror camp run by JeM in Balakot, a hill town in Pakistan’s Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province.
The Pakistani side started building up for a confrontation and resorted to ceasefire violation in Rajouri sector in Jammu and Kashmir.
There were reports that the Pakistani Air Force jets dropped bombs in Rajouri sector. No reports of casualties have been reported so far.
