India Dismisses Military Officers

The Indian government has dismissed three officers for accidentally firing an unarmed missile into Pakistan in March.

The Air Force in a statement said a formal inquiry found that “deviation from the Standard Operating Procedures by three officers led to the accidental firing of the missile” into Pakistan.

The BrahMos cruise missile, fired from India on March 9, landed in Pakistan’s eastern Punjab province and damaged a wall in a residential area. No deaths or injuries were reported.

Meanwhile, Pakistan’s Military tracked the missile from its launch and during its more than three-minute-long flight inside Islamabad’s airspace. Pakistani officials demanded an explanation from India, criticizing the launch as a “flagrant violation” that violated the country’s airspace.

Two days after the launch, India’s defense ministry said the missile was fired by accident because of a “technical malfunction” during routine maintenance and called the incident “deeply regrettable.”

Read Also: India Probes Accidental Missile Firing In Pakistan

Report says relations between the countries have been especially strained since 2019 when Pakistan’s air force shot down an Indian warplane in the Pakistan-administered section of Kashmir and captured a pilot in response to an airstrike by Indian aircraft targeting militants in the northwestern town of Balakot inside Pakistan.

However, India said its airstrikes targeted Pakistan-based militants responsible for a suicide bombing that killed 40 Indian troops in Indian-controlled Kashmir. Pakistan later released the pilot.

AP/CO