Terrorists from Pakistan had struck the Pathankot air base on January 2
New Delhi:
The Foreign Secretaries of India and Pakistan have spoken on the phone and have mutually agreed to reschedule their talks - which had been loosely set for tomorrow - "in the very near future," foreign ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup said today.
Here are the 10 latest developments on this big story:
"We will go by what objective evidence we see on ground not empty statements. So far what Pakistan has done we welcome," Mr Swarup said. India has suggested that for Foreign Secretary talks to take place, Pakistan must take swift action against those responsible for the Pathankot terror attack.
India today said it welcomes "as a first step" the detention in Pakistan of leaders of the Jaish-e-Mohammed, the terror group that attacked the Pathankot Air Force Base earlier this month. The action was announced yesterday by Pakistani premier Nawaz Sharif's office.
Mr Swarup said there was no confirmation from Pakistan on the detention of Maulana Masood Azhar, chief of the Jaish-e-Mohammed.
Earlier in the day, Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it has no information about the detention two days ago of Masood Azhar, as reported by Pakistani media.
India has said it supports Pakistan's decision to send investigators to India as part of the probe to collect important evidence about the Pathankot attack, in which seven military personnel were martyred and 22 were injured.
After the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai, Pakistan had refused to send investigators here to work with Indian intel officers.
Pakistan has rejected some of the evidence given by India, including phone numbers that the terrorists called their handlers on from Pathankot. Islamabad has reportedly conveyed that those phone numbers are not registered in Pakistan.
"We have given actionable intelligence to Pakistan. We hope Pakistan will continue investigations and bring the perpetrators to justice," Mr Swarup said.
Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar was arrested in Kashmir in 1994, but was released along with two other Pakistani terrorists in 1999 in return for 155 passengers held hostage in an Indian Airlines aircraft that was hijacked to Kandahar in Afghanistan.
Vikas Swarup denied reports that the National Security Advisors or NSAs of the two countries have met, but said they have been in regular touch.
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