ISLAMABAD
Pakistan on Friday repatriated Wing Commander Abhinandan to India as good-will gesture to give peace a chance.
Pakistan Air Force (PAF) after striking down two Indian fighter jets arrested a pilot on Feb 27, who ejected himself after being hit in the airspace of Pakistan in Azad Jammu and Kashmir.
Hours after the arrest, Pakistan military had released a video statement of a captured Indian pilot.
“I’m wing commander Abhinandan and my service number is 27981,” the arrested Indian pilot said in his video statement.
I’m a flying pilot of the Indian air force (IAF), he continued in his statement.
In a video footage, Abhinandan can be seen sharing his views and thanking the Pakistan armed forces for saving his life from the mob at crash site.
Abinandan remained in Pakistan for two days.
In a video aired before his departure, he lauded the best treatment was given by Pakistan army and called it a professional force.
Earlier on Thursday Prime Minister Imran Khan while addressing a joint parliamentary session in the wake of soaring tensions between India and Pakistan, announced to release the captured Indian pilot, Abhinandan, as a gesture of peace.
After presenting a tribute to the opposition and the entire nation for standing united during the recent time, PM Khan asserted “to not misconstrue Pakistan’s desire for de-escalation as weakness.”
He again urged India not to go beyond this point of aggression as all issues should be resolved through dialogue. “Countries are ruined because of miscalculation. War is not a solution. If India takes any action, we will have to retaliate,” PM Khan vehemently said.
“The only purpose of our strike was to demonstrate our capability and will. We did not want to inflict any casualty on India as we wanted to act in a responsible manner.”
As a gesture of peace, the prime minister announced to release the captured pilot of Indian Air Force, Abhinandan, on Friday. “I had said that if India does something then we will respond,” he continued.
Prime Minister Khan appreciated the Pakistani media and noted that Indian media created war hysteria. However, “our media showed solidarity and acted responsibly.”
