THE SUNDAY Vol. 36 No. 33 | Sunday, May 11, 2025 24 Pages | `5 & for State `6 | Reg. No. MCS/048/2021-23; RNI No. 46955/1988 M.p.c.s. office Mumbai-400001 FREE PRESS JOURNAL Happy e Mothy r’s a D Leader in E-paper circulation l www.freepressjournal.in ● EDITIONS: ● MUMBAI ● INDORE ● PUNE ● BHOPAL ● NASHIK ● KONKAN ● E-paper PLAY & PAUSE Weekend How mothers use messaging apps to stay connected Live Smart Raising financially savvy kids Raja Kumari on her new album and spirituality Sunday Read Celebs pay candid tributes to their moms BACK FROM THE BRINK | Hectic behind-the-scenes diplomacy by Team Trump pays off as stage is set for talks on a broad set of issues at a neutral site America mediates ceasefire FPJ News Service MUMBAI Full-fledged American interlocution has led to a "full and immediate" ceasefire, President Donald Trump announced on Saturday. It came hours after a briefing in the morning in New Delhi by Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri in which it was pointed out that Pakistan had been moving troops with an escalatory intent and that it had stepped up its hostilities. President Trump took to Truth Social to say, "After a long night of talks mediated by the United States, I am pleased to announce that India and Pakistan have agreed to a FULL AND IMMEDIATE CEASEFIRE ." He added, "Congratulations to both Countries on using Common Sense and Great Intelligence. Thank you for your attention to this matter!". The announcement by Trump came after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Pakistan Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar and Pakistan Army chief Gen Asim Munir. Rubio also made a similar statement on X. As he put it, "Over the past 48 hours, @VP Vance and I have engaged with senior Indian and Pakistani officials, including Prime Ministers Narendra Modi and Shehbaz Sharif, External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishan- Breaking Unsustainable losses PAKISTAN WARNED OVER CEASEFIRE VIOLATION FPJ News Service MUMBAI Hours after the announcement of the ceasefire, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said that the ceasefire was being violated by Pakistan and asked it to take steps to bring the situation under control. In a short, sharp statement, Misri said, “For the last few hours there have been repeated violations of the understanding arrived at earlier this evening between the Directors General of Military Operations of India and Pakistan. This is a breach of the understanding arrived at earlier today. The armed forces are giving an adequate and appropriate response to these violations and we take very, very serious notice of these violations. We call upon Pakistan to take appropriate steps to address these violations and deal with the situation with seriousness and responsibility. The armed forces are maintaining a strong vigil on the situation and they have been given instructions to deal strongly with any repetition of the violation of the border in the international border as well as the line of control.” His warning came after violations were reported in many locations, an indication that the orders had either not percolated down to the ground fast enough or there could be freelancing at work at the lower levels of the Pakistani troops deployed along the areas where the violations occurred. suffered by Pakistan Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar NEW DELHI The Ministry of Defence on Saturday said while an understanding has been reached to stop all military activities at sea, in the air and on land, the defence forces were - Navy, Army and the Indian Air Force - have been instructed to adhere to it, they “remain fully operationally ready to launch whatever operations may be required in defence of the nation”. Addressing the media soon after the announcement on the ceasefire by Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, the MoD convened a press briefing in which Commodore Raghu R. Nair said “understanding has been reached with Pakistan to stop military activities”. He, however, added to good measure that, “Whilst we – kar, Chief of Army Staff Asim Munir, and National Security Advisors Ajit Doval and Asim Malik." He said he was "pleased to announce the Governments of India and Pakis- Donald Trump Pleased to announce the Governments of India and Pakistan have agreed to an immediate ceasefire and to start talks on a broad set of issues at a neutral site Marco Rubio Ceasefire is conditional. Armed forces stand ready to repel any offense the Indian Army, the Indian Navy and the Indian Air Force -- will be adhering to the understanding that has been reached today, we remain fully prepared and ever vigilant and committed to defending the sovereignty and integrity of the motherland.” Nair also cautioned that “every misadventure by Pakistan has been met with strength and every future escalation will invite a decisive response”. Meanwhile, briefing officers for Operation Sindoor, Colonel Sofiya Qureshi and 4Contd on | Nation Agencies WASHINGTON It was sustained diplomacy and international pressure to urge Pakistan and New Delhi to bring down tensions and avoid a wider war that ultimately led to the ceasefire.   U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke with Pakistan's Army Chief General Asim Munir on Friday and urged both Pakistan and India to find ways to de-escalate, a U.S. Department Of State spokesperson said.Rubio even offered American US assistance in starting constructive talks in order to avoid future conflicts, the spokesperson said. He was subsequently to take to X to say that India and Pakistan would indeed be doing so. Rubio also spoke to Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on Saturday when it looked that the situation on the ground was rapidly escalating and reiterated the call to "re-establish direct communication" between India and Pakistan. The US State Department had explicitly made clear that diplomatic channels were whirring away in order to bring the situation involving two nuclear powers under control. 4Contd on | Nation Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval attend a meeting in New Delhi on Saturday –PTI Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar NEW DELHI India will now consider every act of terror against its people as an act of war and reserve the right to deal with it accordingly, government sources said soon after Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a high-level security meeting at his 7, Lok Kalyan Marg residence on Saturday to review the evolving border situation in the wake of escalating tensions with Pakistan. The high-level meeting was attended among others by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Anil Chauhan, the three service chiefs -- Army chief General Upendra Dwivedi, Air Force chief Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh and Navy chief Dinesh K. Tripathi – as also the Director of Intelligence Bureau and Chief of Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW). G7 call for restraint Before the ceasefire announcement, the G7 group of nations called for “immediate deescalation” and “maximum restraint”. “Further military escalation poses a serious threat to regional stability,” the Foreign Ministers of the grouping said in a statement, adding that both sides should “engage in direct dialogue towards a peaceful outcome.” “We, the G7 Foreign Ministers of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States of America and the High Representative of the European Union, strongly condemn the egregious terrorist attack in Pahalgam on April 22 and urge maximum restraint from both India and Pakistan. Further military escalation poses a serious threat to regional stability. We are deeply concerned for the safety of civilians on both sides,” the G-7 statement said. Saudi Arabia, peace broker Saudi Arabia was also part of the efforts to get India and Pakistan to ease tensions, it was formally revealed on Saturday. Minister of Foreign Affairs Faisal bin Farhan said it had evoked its "close and balanced relations" with both India and Pakistan and discussed efforts to de-escalate tensions and end ongoing military confrontations between them. The Saudi involvement in the interlocution leads to speculation if the neutral site for India and Pakistan to talk could be on Saudi soil. 4Contd on | Nation 4Contd on | Nation Civilians in cross hairs MISINFORMATION THE FOCUS IN PAKISTAN’S WAR CLAIMS: INDIA Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar NEW DELHI Pakistan has been deliberately targeting civilian targets across the Line of Control and the International Border in both desperation and in a “consistent attempt to sow discord between communities in India”, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said during the briefing on Operation Sindoor on Saturday. Referring to Pakistan attacking a medicare centre and a school premises at the air bases of Srinagar, Awantipora and Udhampur, the senior official said targeting of such civilian infrastructure was a “deplorable cowardly act” and yet again displayed the neighbouring country’s “irresponsible targeting of our civilian infrastructure”.  Misri said “Pakistan continues with its execrable and wanton campaign of targeting Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar NEW DELHI civilians and civilian infrastructure, especially in the states of Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab. There is also, on its part, a consistent attempt to sow discord between communities in India.” He had during the last two meetings specifically mentioned how Pakistan had targeted a gurdwara and a Christian school in Poonch causing casualties. Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar In an indication that things were going to get grimmer, India on Saturday had accused Pakistan of intensifying drone and missile strikes across the border and of moving its troops into forward areas in a clear sign of intent to escalate. This was hours before the Pakistan DGMO, under American pressure, called up the Indian DGMO to discuss ceasefire. Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri hat termed Pakistan's actions on the night of Friday, as it stepped up its offensive, “provocative and escalatory.” 4Contd on | Nation 4See also | Nation Congratulations to both Countries on using Common Sense and Great Intelligence. Thank you for your attention to this matter. ‘ACTS OF TERROR WILL BE TREATED AS ACTS OF WAR’ The Foreign Secretary also mourned the death of Additional District Development Commissioner Shri Raj Kumar Thapa during Pakistan’s shelling of Rajouri town. He added that there was also overnight damage to property and injuries to civilians in Ferozepur and Jalandhar, among other places. 4Contd on | Nation New Delhi red flagged escalation NEW DELHI tan have agreed to an immediate ceasefire and to start talks on a broad set of issues at a neutral site". Shortly afterwards, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri announced “The DGMO (Director General of Military Operations) of Pakistan called the DGMO of India at 3.35 pm earlier this afternoon and that "It was agreed between them that both sides would stop all firing and military action on land, and in the air and sea, with effect from 1700 hours IST Saturday." he said. Diplomacy turned key to de-escalation Pakistan’s attacks across 26 locations resulted in “limited damage” to equipment and personnel at Indian Air Force stations at Udhampur, Pathankot, Adampur and Bhuj. Thereafter briefing officer Colonel Sofiya Qureshi pointed out that Pakistan military has been observed to be moving their troops into forward areas, “indicating offensive intent to further escalate the situation.” Elaborating on how Pakistan had increased the level of its actions, Wing Commander Vyomika Singh said its military carried out aggressive actions employing multiple threat vectors all along the western border. “Pakistan employed UCAV, drones, long-range weapons, loitering munitions and fighter aircraft to target civilian areas and military infrastructure. Pakistan military also resorted to air intrusions using drones and firing of heavy calibre weapons along the Line of Control,” Singh said. The briefing officers also pointed out that along the International Border and the Line of Control, “air intrusions and several harassment attacks were also attempted from Srinagar till Naliya at more than 26 locations.” They said Indian Armed Forces successfully neutralised these threats and majority of the vectors – a military term for missiles, drones and other projectiles. 4Contd on | Nation In a briefing on Saturday morning, India called out Pakistan’s “misinformation campaign” during the Operation Sindoor and said that claims about activities that they have undertaken continue to be “heavy on lies, misinformation, and propaganda”. Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri charged that most of these false claims from Pakistan were being peddled by its state agencies. “The claims that they have made about attacking and destroying various places, various military installations and facilities, are completely false,” he said. In this regard, Misri gave the specifics of certain claims made by Pakistan and how they were complete lies. “The claim about the Air Force Station in Sirsa being destroyed, completely false, as you have seen. The claim about the Air Force Station in Surat being destroyed, completely false again, as you have seen. There is a claim that has been made that the S-400 base at Adampur was destroyed, completely false, once again,” he said. The Foreign Secretary said claims have also been made by Pakistan about large sections of Indian critical infrastructure, power systems, cyber systems, etc. being attacked and destroyed. However, he insisted that these too were “completely false”. Misri urged people not be “misled by this tissue of lies that is being peddled by the Pakistani state for obvious purposes.” He also highlighted a highly Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri with IAF officer Wing Commander Vyomika Singh and Army Colonel Sofiya Qureshi at a press conference in New Delhi on Saturday –PTI Runway at Sirsa, Haryana “ludicrous claim” from Pakistan in which it said Indian missiles have hit Afghanistan. “Totally frivolous allegation,” Misri responded, adding that “Afghan people don’t need to be reminded about which country it is, that has on multiple occasions, in just the last one and a half years, targeted civilian populations and civilian infrastructure in Afghanistan.” Briefing officer Wing Commander Vyomika Singh also showed video evidence to claim how Pakistan had made false claims about targeting various Indian military installations. She said Pakistan attempted to execute a continued malicious misinformation campaign with claims of destruction of Indian S-400 system at Adampur, destruction of airfields at Suratgarh and Sirsa, BrahMos base at Nagrota, RT gun positions at Dehrangyari and Chandigarh Forward Ammunition Depot.” Stating that claims on social media had pointed to heavy damages to other military stations as well, Singh said “India Suratgarh, Rajasthan unequivocally rejects these false narratives being spread by Pakistan.” She then showed images of air force bases in the Punjab sector and Rajasthan taken on Saturday morning to debunk the Pakistani claims causing destruction at these air bases. The images from Sirsa, Suratgarh and other air force stations showed that the runways were intact. The officer also noted that these images were “timestamped” and of today to show the actual state of affairs.