Pakistan rushes air defence, electronic assets forward; steps up readiness drills

Time of India

29-04-2025

Pakistan has moved key air defence assets and electronic warfare detachments to forward locations near the border and has been conducting continuous air readiness drills, even as its defence minister Khwaja Asif said the country is bracing for an "imminent" attack by India in response to the April 22
Pahalgam terrorist attack
.
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Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said the armed forces have complete operational freedom to decide on the mode, targets and timing of the Indian response to the terrorist attack.
Pakistani moves have been detected at several locations across the border, with the Sialkot sector being reinforced with radar systems to detect Indian aerial assets and similar movement observed near Lahore as well, said people with knowledge of the matter.
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Electronic warfare assets have also been sent to the front and are active across the Ferozepur sector, according to the people. The movements indicate that Pakistan is bracing for a long-range attack on headquarters or bases of key terrorist groups, they said.
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Other key moves include moving additional troops to Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) from other areas such as Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The new troops are reinforcement for the regular
Pakistan Army deployments
along the Line of Control (LoC) with India which has seen increased tension since the Pahalgam attack, with continuous firing exchanges for the past six days.
In an interview to Reuters, Pakistan's defence minister Asif said, "We have reinforced our forces because it (incursion by India) is something which is imminent now."
Movements of the Pakistan Army's 6th Armoured Division and 7th Infantry Division have been observed at Bagh, Rawalakot, and Toli Peer in PoK, said people in the know. This is unusual, they said, as the 6th Armoured Division is based in Gujranwala and the 7th Infantry Division is typically deployed along the Punjab border. Some of these deployments are likely to be targeted at the Poonch sector in Jammu and Kashmir.
Positioning of Pakistani artillery systems and long-range rockets has also been observed in Bagh, Toli Peer and Rawalkot areas. The Pakistani side is believed to have deployed Chinese origin A-100 multi-barrel rocket launchers (MBRL) in PoK that have a range of more than 100 km. In the Chhamb sector, deployment of KRL-122 MBRLs, which have an estimated range of close to 40 km, has been observed, besides Al Khalid main battle tanks.
The Pakistani Army has also ordered elements from the 33rd and 41st Infantry Divisions of XII Corps from Balochistan to move to the border with India, the people said.
Besides, the Pakistan Air Force has been observed to be on heightened alert for the past few days, with several exercises ongoing and intense flying being carried out.
It is believed that the Nur Khan base at Rawalpindi has been recently reinforced with F-16C fighter jets and other assets. The Quadri air force base at Skardu is believed to have received a detachment of around 18 fighter jets in recent days, likely to be Chinese-made JF-17s.
In Pakistan's south, its air force has been undertaking an exercise named Zarb e Haideri, which involves J-10C, JF-17 Block III and F-16 fighter jets. Pakistan is particularly worried about Karachi. Its most advanced HQ 9/P air defence systems have been deployed to protect Karachi from airborne and sea-side threats.