A Pakistani unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) was on Tuesday, 26 February, shot down near the International Border in Kutch district of Gujarat, police sources said.
Debris of the UAV was seen near Nundhatad village in Abdasa taluka of Kutch, they said. On hearing a loud noise around 6 am, villagers went to the spot and found the debris of the UAV, the sources said.
“Incident occurred at 6:30 am. Air force personnel from Mothara Air Force Station are at the spot. Even we don’t have additional information about the matter as air force has taken over the location and kept the whole matter confidential. At this point we can’t comment about the origins of the drone.”VR Ulwa, Kothra Police Station PSI
Kutch is the largest district in Gujarat, with a significant portion of land covered by salt flats, which is split by the International Border carved between India and Pakistan. However, Nundhatad is far from the international border and is located between the Bhuj-Naliya Route.
Asked if a Pakistani UAV had been shot down by the Indian armed forces, a police official, on condition of anonymity, said, "Such an incident has happened, we are investigating the matter." The official, however, refused to elaborate further.
According to ANI, the drone was brought down by the Indian Army using the Israeli Spyder Air Defence Missile System, which fired a ‘Derby Missile’. Sources told ANI that this is the first time that the Spyder has been deployed to bring down any enemy aircraft.
In a pre-dawn strike on Tuesday, combat jets of the Indian Air Force bombed a JeM terror camp across the Line of Control, 12 days after Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed terror group claimed responsibility for the Pulwama attack in Kashmir, the foreign secretary said.
According to reports, IAF's Mirage 2000 fighter jets pounded the terror camp in Balakot in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman briefed Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the operation.
Hours later, Prime Minister Modi chaired a meeting of Cabinet Committee on Security, which was attended by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Sitharaman.
Government sources said significant damage has been inflicted on the terrorists.
(With inputs from PTI)
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