1961 Pakistani Bombing of Batmalai

Last updated
Pakistani bombing of batmalai (1961)
Part of the Afghanistan–Pakistan border conflict, Bajaur Campaign and the Cold War
DateMarch 1961
Location
Result

Successful Bombing raid

  • Ammunition dumps and cache destroyed [1] [2] [3]
Belligerents

Flag of Pakhtunistan.svg Pashtun Nationalists

Supported by:
Flag of Afghanistan (1931-1973).svg  Afghanistan [2] [4]
Flag of Pakistan.svg  Pakistan
Commanders and leaders
Flag of Pakhtunistan.svg Bacha Khan [1] [2] [5]
(Also known as Pacha khan or Badshah gul)
Flag of the Chief of the Army Staff (Pakistan).svg Gen. Musa Khan
Units involved
Unknown
Casualties and losses
Ammunation and cache destroyed [1] None

The Pakistani Bombing of Batmalai 1961 was a bombing mission carried out by the Pakistani air force in the Batmalai district of Bajaur in March 1961, which was executed against the insurgents who were equipped with weapons and ammunition and also received funding from Afghanistan. [6] [2] The bombing is part of the Bajaur Campaign in September 1960–September 1961, which saw the beginning of the Bajaur Campaign, which was a large-scale war between Afghanistan and Pakistan in Pakistan's federally administered tribal areas, mainly in and around Bajaur District. The Afghan invasion, however, came to an end as a result of airstrikes by Pakistan in the Kunar Province of Afghanistan. [7] [8] [9]

Contents

Background

Afghanistan refused to acknowledge the Durand Line, which marks the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan and which Pakistan acquired from British India. Relationships between the two nations soured as a result of these substantial, illegal territorial claims over the western regions of Pakistan, which roughly correspond with the provinces of Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa as of today. Afghanistan began supporting proxies and starting frequent border skirmishes with Pakistan. [10]

Detail

Prime Minister Daoud, who had long been a strong advocate of “Pushtunistan,” twice sent several thousand troops into the Bajaur region based on false intelligence reports about the consequences of local tribal clashes. In late September 1960, Afghan irregulars and Army troops disguised as tribesmen stormed the Bajaur but were repelled by the Bajaur Pushtun, who, despite their frequent clashes with each other, resented outside interference, whether it came from Pakistan or Afghanistan. [11] [12]

In May 1961, another large-scale assault took place, this time by regular Afghan troops (this time disguised as tribesmen). [13] This attack took place after the Nawab of Dir, with the help of his son (Khan of Jandol), persuaded the Afghan pashtuns to join them in their battle against the Khan of Khar. [5] According to sources, before the Afghan lashkar crossed the border, they received a call from their officers, who assured them that they would all meet in Malakand. [14] [4]

The Afghans advanced quickly towards Shahi, Miskanai (the capital of Jandol Khan), and Sangpura. That time, the tribesmen, together with the newly formed Bajaur Scouts (a military unit recruited locally but under the command of Pakistani officers posted to the Border Force), encountered Afghans who fought well during the night but were threatened by daylight attacks from American-born F-86 bomber pilots used by the Pakistan Air Force during 1961. Afghanistan provided weapons and ammunition to proxies under the leadership of Pacha Gul, inciting an uprising in the Batmalai district of Bajaur. Pacha Gul was advised to go before an aerial counteroffensive would be triggered for serving as an agent for Afghanistan and providing resources, cash, and arms to the bajaur tribesmen. [15] Later on, the PAF aerial bombardment in the Bajaur District successfully destroyed the ammunition stored in Bataimala. As a result, an uprising was avoided. [6] [16] [17] [18] [19] [14]

Further events

After this event, in an attempt to conquer the area, Royal Afghan Army forces and thousands of Pashtun tribesmen from Afghanistan crossed the highly porous Pakistan-Afghanistan border and entered the semi-autonomous Bajaur Agency of Pakistan. [7] Additionally, Afghanistan stationed thousands of soldiers along the Pakistani border during this time, along with tanks and artillery, and often attacked locally stationed soldiers from mountainous positions. [20]

In order to aid the Pakistani forces and the local Pashtun tribesmen in their battle against the Afghan infiltrators, the Pakistan Air Force dispatched F-86 Sabre aircraft. Additionally, the F-86 Sabre jets carried out bombing missions against locations held by the Royal Afghan Army in Kunar, Afghanistan, forcing the Afghan forces to retreat to the border with Pakistan. [7] [21] [22] [18]

See also

Bibliography

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