Pakistan foreign office says country will 'soon' respond to Indian dossier on Jaish-e-Mohammed

Islamabad: Pakistan on Thursday said it will “soon” respond to a dossier handed over to it by India on “specific details” of involvement of the Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) in the deadly Pulwama terror attack as also the presence of camps of the UN-proscribed terror outfit in the country. “It’s being evaluated and a response would be given soon,” Pakistan foreign office spokesperson Mohammad Faisal told reporters. [caption id=“attachment_6174921” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  File photo of JeM chief Masood Azhar. AFP[/caption] The JeM took responsibility for the attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama district on 14 February in which 40 CRPF personnel were killed. Tensions between India and Pakistan flared up after the attack. India launched a counter-terror operation in Balakot on 26 February. The next day, Pakistan Air Force retaliated and downed a MiG-21 in an aerial combat and captured its pilot Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman, who was handed over to India on 1 March. Responding to questions during his weekly media briefing, Faisal claimed Pakistan “defeated India militarily, diplomatically and politically in the ongoing border row, which has de-escalated over the past few days.” “Our desire is peace but when we talk it is considered weakness,” he added. On the Kartarpur corridor, Faisal said it was a project initiated by Prime Minister Imran Khan and Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa, for which a Pakistani delegation will be visiting India on 14 March. He said India first suggested that meeting be held in New Delhi, which Pakistan accepted, however, the venue was later changed to Attari. “Pakistan again agreed with Indian suggestion and if circumstances are not changed until March 14, then the Pakistani delegation will visit India,” he said. India and Pakistan agreed to open up a special border crossing linking Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Pakistan’s Kartarpur: the final resting place of Sikh faith’s founder Guru Nanak Dev - to Dera Baba Nanak shrine in India’s Gurdaspur district to facilitate visa-free visit of Indian Sikh pilgrims to Kartarpur.