Operation Barisal

Operation Barisal
	Part of Operation Searchlight and Bangladesh Liberation War
Date	25 April 1971 – 1 May 1971
Location	Barisal, Bay of Bengal, East Pakistan (now Bangladesh)22°48′N 90°30′E / 22.8°N 90.5°E
Result	Inconclusive Initiation of Bangladesh Liberation War;
Belligerents
Pakistan Pakistan Navy; Pakistan Army; Pakistan Air Force;	Bangladesh Mukti Bahini; Supported By:; India
Commanders and leaders
Captain Ejaz Chaudhri	M. A. Jalil; Major Rashedul Hasan
Units involved
17th Naval Gun Boat Squadron; Special Service Group Navy (SSGN); 22nd Frontier Force Regiment; 6th Punjab Regiment; No. 14 Squadron	Mukti Bahini Barisal Units
Strength
4 gunboats; 1 destroyer; 1 patrol boat; 24 fighter jets	Unknown
Casualties and losses
23 wounded	Unknown
	Further information, see Indo-Pakistani War of 1971
	Barisal class=notpageimage\| Location within Bangladesh

Operation Barisal was a

code-name of naval operation conducted by Pakistan Navy intended to take control of the city of Barisal, East Pakistan from the Mukti Bahini and the dissidents of the Pakistan Defence Forces. It was the part of Operation Searchlight.^[1]

Since the starting of Searchlight, the Mukti Bahini had been staging large scale sabotage missions, disturbing the communications and signals operatives in East Pakistan.

Naval Intelligence found traces to the city of Barisal, therefore decided to conduct the operation. The operation was part of Searchlight and was to provide logistic support to the Pakistan Army

, by first deploying the Pakistan Navy's gun boats and navy personnel on grounds.