Pak should avoid military action and take meaningful action against terrorist groups operating on its soil: US after IAF air strikes

The United States has asked Pakistan to avoid military action and take meaningful action against the terrorist group operating on its soil.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said, "I also spoke to Pakistani Foreign Minister Qureshi to underscore the priority of de-escalating current tensions by avoiding military action, and the urgency of Pakistan taking meaningful action against terrorist groups operating on its soil," read the statement from Secretary Pompeo.

Acknowledging Indian actions as "counter-terrorism" action, the US Secretary of State said, "Following Indian counter-terrorism actions on February 26, I spoke with Indian Minister of External Affairs Swaraj to emphasize our close security partnership and shared the goal of maintaining peace and security in the region," read the statement.

"I expressed to both the Ministers that we encourage India and Pakistan to exercise restraint and avoid escalation at any cost. I also encouraged both Ministers to prioritize direct communication and avoid any further military activity," it read.

Indian Air Force on Tuesday carried out multiple air strike at terror camps in Balakot in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The air strikes come 12 days after the dreaded terror outfit - Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) - carried out a debilitating attack on the CRPF convoy in Pulwama on February 14 in which as many as 40 jawans were killed.

The IAF carried out multiple aerial strikes at terror launch pads at various places in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir, destroying control rooms of Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) and other infrastructure.

The air strikes killed a large number of terrorists, trainers and senior commanders of Jaish. Over 300 terrorists including Jaish chief Masood Azhar's brother-in-law were killed.