 "Pakistan Defence Minister Khawaja Asif")
As tensions with India rise, Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif announced on Friday (May 9) during a Parliament session that madrassa (religious schools) students will serve as the country’s second line of defence when needed. This statement followed India’s retaliatory drone strikes on multiple locations in Pakistan the previous day.
“As far as Madrassas or Madrassa students are concerned, there’s no doubt they are our second line of defence, the youngsters who are studying there. When the time comes, they will be used as needed 100 per cent,” Khawaja Asif said.
Asif’s statement came after India’s central government on Friday authorised the Chief of the Army Staff to call upon members of the Territorial Army as tensions with Pakistan rise.
Asif, known for making controversial remarks, also gave the lawmakers the reason why the Indian drone attack on Thursday was not thwarted by Pakistan forces, an argument that directly contradicted a previous claim made by the Pakistan Army that the projectiles fired by India were intercepted.
Asif said, “The drone attack was mounted to detect our locations. It’s a technical thing that I can’t explain. We didn’t intercept the drones, so that the location of our aerial defence units won’t get leaked.”
Impact Shorts
More ShortsIndia said Thursday it targeted air defence units of Pakistan across several cities, effectively inflicting severe damage and taking out an air defence system in Lahore.
According to reports, India used Israeli-developed Harpy kamikaze drones in these attacks.
Earlier on Thursday, the Pakistani Army claimed that they had shot down 25 Indian drones since Wednesday night.
However, a spokesperson for the army, Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudry, acknowledged that drone attacks in Rawalpindi, Lahore and an area near Karachi had resulted in a civilian casualty and an injury.
Since the beginning of the India-Pakistan conflict on May 7, Khawaja Asif has increasingly made global headlines for his controversial remarks.