Islamabad, Dec 28 (ANI): Pakistan has rejected the findings of a joint US-NATO inquiry into the November 26 airstrike that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers, saying the bombardment went on long after it reported its troops were under fire.
According to a CNN report, in a letter to the US Congress, Pakistan said its troops came under fire at well-identified border posts and that NATO commanders knew helicopter gunships were firing on Pakistani forces 'within the first fifteen minutes' - yet the attack continued for more than another hour.
"This attack was the most recent example of the losses Pakistan has suffered fighting alongside the United States to combat terrorism and extremism," the letter states.
"The strike has strained ties between Washington and a key ally in the region, and an apology by the US Department of Defence to the people of Pakistan would not be inappropriate," the letter added.
The inquiry, headed by a US Air Force general Stephen Clark, found that both the American and Pakistani forces were to blame for the deaths, citing poor information and insufficient coordination between forces on the ground, The Nation reports.
Clark also said that the Pakistani military reported to the Americans that they were under attack, but when asked for their location, the Pakistanis refused to reveal it, arguing that the coalition forces must know where they were because they were firing at them.
But in its letter to Congress, Pakistan said the incident 'has raised suspicions in the rank and file of the Pakistan Army that it was a premeditated attack and was conducted to undermine the sovereignty and stature of Pakistan'.
Pakistan said that their border posts came under fire first, and that any claim to the contrary is 'baseless'. (ANI)
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