Pakistan will celebrate the “success” of its recent military operation against India every year on 10 May, prime minister Shehbaz Sharif has announced.
Youm-e-Marka-e-Haq, or Day of the Battle of Truth, will be observed across the country with “fervour and passion of national solidarity", Mr Sharif was quoted as saying by local media.
Pakistan will also pay tribute to the armed forces for "achieving magnificent success on the defence front” and “bow before Allah in gratitude" on Friday, the prime minister said, adding that special prayers will be offered that day for the progress of the country.
For four days last week, India and Pakistan engaged in the most intense fighting in decades that killed at least 70 people before a ceasefire was reached over the weekend.
The conflict ensued after India, in an overnight attack last Wednesday, struck nine alleged militant hideouts in Pakistan. The airstrikes, dubbed "Operation Sindoor", were conducted in retaliation for the killing of 26 people, mostly Hindu tourists, in a terror attack in Kashmir on 22 April.
New Delhi accused Pakistan of backing the gunmen who carried out the massacre. Islamabad denied the charge and sought an independent investigation.
In the wake of the attack, the two nations expelled each other’s diplomats, suspended visas, and closed airspaces and land borders. India also suspended a crucial treaty on river water sharing.
The Indian strikes escalated the tensions into a military conflict as the two sides exchanged heavy fire along their de facto border in the restive Kashmir region as well as missile and drone strikes on military installations.
The Indian military claimed to have killed nearly 100 militants with its overnight strikes and 35-40 personnel of Pakistan’s armed forces in subsequent action along the de facto border.
The Pakistani army said on Tuesday that the clash with India had left 11 soldiers and 40 civilians dead. A Pakistani minister last week claimed their armed forces had killed 40-50 Indian soldiers.
Both India and Pakistan claimed to have downed each other’s fighter jets in a dogfight that reportedly involved over 125 aircraft, making it the largest aerial battle since the Second World War.
Both nations also claimed victory in the overall fighting, which was halted after US president Donald Trump announced a ceasefire on Saturday afternoon.
The Pakistani military said on Sunday they had not asked for a ceasefire, as was claimed by India, and that it was India which had sought a truce.
Pakistan also denied India’s accusation of violating the ceasefire by sending drones across the border. Instead, Islamabad said on Monday, India had violated the truce agreement by resorting to "unprovoked" shelling across the Kashmir border, killing a civilian.
