Pakistan Army on Wednesday said it has arrested "only one" Indian pilot, retracting from its earlier statement that two IAF pilots were under its custody.
"There is only one pilot under Pakistan Army's custody. Wing Comd Abhi Nandan is being treated as per norms of military ethics," Pakistani military spokesperson Major General Asif Ghafoor said.
Earlier, Ghafoor claimed that two Indian Air Force (IAF) pilots were arrested. One pilot is injured and has been shifted to a hospital, while another one is unhurt, the spokesman had said.
In New Delhi, the Ministry of External Affairs said that Pakistan Air Force targeted military installations in India in response to Indian counter-terrorism operations but their attempts were foiled successfully though one Indian pilot is "missing in action".
The MEA said that according to Pakistan the missing IAF pilot was in their custody. "We are ascertaining that," the MEA spokesman said.
The Indian Air Force on Wednesday shot down a Pakistani F-16 jet which had come close to the Line of Control. The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) F16 came down in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
India shot down one of the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) F-16s that had come close to the LoC in Nowshera sector. The aircraft fell three kilometres in Pakistani-occupied Kashmir, officials said.
As the PAF jets approached the LoC, the Indian Air Force (IAF) scrambled fighters. Retaliatory fire from the ground force forced the F-16s to return but not before one took a hit and went down.
The incident occurred a day after IAF jets bombed the biggest training camp of the Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) outfit in Balakot.
"The jets entered the Indian air space over Nowshera in Rajouri district this morning," a police officer said, adding that the Indian fighter jets on air patrol immediately scrambled and pushed them back beyond the LoC.
PTI
