Army, PAF put on high alert after Indian threats

ISLAMABAD - Pakistani troops and Air Force have been put on high alert in the face of "escalation" by India on eastern border and the forces deployed on western frontier could also be pulled back, said the top security officials here on Saturday.
In a briefing to media, senior Pakistani officials revealed that the United States and NATO had also been informed about the possible decision by Pakistan to withdraw its troops from western border as India was involved in troops buildup on the eastern border in the wake of Mumbai terrorist attacks.
"The situation is very critical, tension is mounting and next 24 hours are very crucial," said a senior official desiring not to be named because of the sensitivity of the situation.
He said, "We're very vigilant. If there is any threat we are ready for that. We are watching the situation and next 24-48 hours are very crucial. The situation will be cleared."
Pakistan may pull out its over 100,000 security forces if India continued implicating Pakistan in the Mumbai attacks, the officials said, adding, war on terror could also be affected due to the latest developments in the region.
The officials said If something happened on that front the war on terror would not be Pakistan's priority and it would take out everything from western border. Pakistan would not leave anything there, he said, while, referring to the western border.
"The tension level is going up. They're taking this at very rapid speed. They're giving us signals that this happened from our side. Implicitly, they said you're involved," one of the senior officials stated.
He said that there was no involvement of any Pakistani institution in any manner in Mumbai carnage. If that happened by default then that is the failure of Indian intelligence.
"If they want to share something with us they should have come to Pakistan with evidence, credible evidence". "It's strange why they demanded ISI DG to visit there," the officials asked.
They said that it was a high profile security sensitive issue. It was not an ideal situation for a country to go for a war. Coercion was there and it was going up and it needs to be neutralized, they added.
"The visit of any ISI official was also in doubt. As far as the timeframe of sending anybody there is concerned it doesn't look in the near future," another security official indicated.
He said non-state actors were involved in the incident. Indian terrorist groups were strengthening very much but unfortunately Indian government was not recognizing it.
They said Pakistan also put its Air Force on a high alert. "In case of any Indian aggression, Pakistan will respond in the matching response," they stated.
Meanwhile, the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Parvez Ashfaq Kayani and the Director General of the ISI also met here, discussing the situation prevailing in the wake of the recent terror attacks in Mumbai, the financial capital city of India.
The officials said that after Mumbai attacks, the Indian External Affairs Minister, Pranab Mukherjee called senior Pakistani officials and gave threats. The officials allege that it seems as if Indian authorities wanted to escalate the already fragile situation.
The official said, "Indian Foreign Minister called a Pakistani official and he threatened seriously."