Operation Gibraltar
Operation Gibraltar | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Part of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 | |||||||
Geopolitical map of Kashmir provided by the United States CIA, c. 2004 | |||||||
| |||||||
Belligerents | |||||||
India | Pakistan | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Maj. Gen. Akhtar Hussain Malik[5][6][7] | |||||||
Strength | |||||||
100,000+[8] | 20,000[9] — 30,000[10] | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
Unknown | Unknown |
Operation Gibraltar was the codename of a military operation planned and executed by the Pakistan Army in the territory of Jammu and Kashmir, India in August 1965. The operation's strategy was to covertly cross the Line of Control (LoC) and incite the Muslim-majority Kashmiri population's uprising against the Indian Government.[11] The military leadership believed that a rebellion (sparked by Operation Gibraltar) by the local Kashmiri population against Indian authorities would serve as Pakistan's casus belli against India on the international stage.[12]
Pakistan's leadership specifically chose this name to draw a parallel to the
In August 1965, Pakistani army troops from the Azad Kashmir Regular Force,[14][15] disguised as locals, entered Jammu and Kashmir from Azad Kashmir with the goal of fomenting an insurgency amongst the Muslim-majority population in the Kashmir Valley. However, the strategy went awry from the outset due to poor coordination, and the infiltrators' presence was soon disclosed to the Indian military.
Following the operation and discovery of the Pakistani army infiltration, India responded by deploying more troops in the Kashmir Valley and the Indian Army subsequently began its assault against the Pakistani army infiltrators operating in the region.
In August 1965, India crossed the ceasefire line, and
Background
Following the
Planning
The original plan for the operation, codenamed
Execution
Name of Force | Area of operation |
---|---|
Salahudin | Srinagar Valley |
Ghaznavi | Mendhar-Rajauri |
Tariq | Kargil – Drass
|
Babur | Nowshera-Sundarbani |
Qasim |
Bandipura-Sonarwain |
Khalid | Qazinag-Naugam |
Nusrat | Tithwal-Tangdhar |
Sikandar |
Gurais |
Khilji |
Kel-Minimarg |
Despite initial reservations by the
The plan was multi-pronged. Infiltrators would mingle with the local populace and incite them to rebellion. Meanwhile,
The Ghaznavi Force (Urdu:غزنوی فورس), named after famous Muslim invader Mahmud of Ghazni, was an auxiliary Special Operations unit formed by the Pakistan Army as part of Operation Gibraltar in 1965 to infiltrate Jammu and Kashmir in the hopes of provoking a local revolt against the Indian regime there. It had a strength of approximately 200 and was composed of regular soldiers of the Azad Kashmir Regular Force and commandos from the Pakistani Special Service Group. Its commander was decorated officer Major Malik Munawar Khan Awan SJ.[39]
The Ghaznavi Force was one of 10 units, each named after a historic Muslim leader, to be assembled for the operation by the Pakistan Army. It infiltrated Jammu and Kashmir in July 1965 to operate in the Poonch-Rajuri area. It was resupplied with ammunition dropped from Pakistan Air Force planes.[40] Towards the end of August, most infiltrators had been found, captured or killed. Those that survived were asked to pull back when India attacked Lahore.[41]
Reasons for Failure
While the covert infiltration was a complete failure that ultimately led to the
According to then Chief of the
Many senior officials also were against the plan, as a failure could lead to an all-out war with India, which many wanted to avoid.[47][48][49][50]
See also
- Operation Desert Hawk
- Indo-Pakistan Wars
- Kargil War
Notes
- ^ Khan, M. Ilyas (5 September 2015). "Operation Gibraltar: The Pakistani troops who infiltrated Kashmir to start a rebellion". BBC News. Archived from the original on 2 September 2020. Retrieved 31 October 2020.
- ISBN 1-86064-898-3.
- ISBN 0-8047-5085-8.
- ISBN 0-312-17562-0.
- ^ ISBN 978-81-7212-001-6.
- ^ ISBN 9781897829035.
- ^ ISBN 9781935501138.
- ^ Khan, M Ilyas (5 September 2015). "Operation Gibraltar: The Pakistani troops who infiltrated Kashmir to start a rebellion". BBC News. Archived from the original on 27 December 2021. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
- ^ Khan, M Ilyas (5 September 2015). "Operation Gibraltar: The Pakistani troops who infiltrated Kashmir to start a rebellion". BBC News. Archived from the original on 27 December 2021. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
- ^ Vij, Shivam (27 August 2015). "Why neither India nor Pakistan won the 1965 war | DW | 27.08.2015". DW.COM. Archived from the original on 9 July 2020. Retrieved 31 October 2020.
- ^ Faruqui, Ahmad (6 August 2018). "Why did Operation Gibraltar fail?". Daily Times. Archived from the original on 5 July 2020. Retrieved 31 October 2020.
- ^ M. Hali, Sultan (21 March 2012). "Operation Gibraltar—An Unmitigated Disaster?". Criterion Quarterly. Archived from the original on 31 October 2020. Retrieved 31 October 2020.
- ISBN 978-0-8157-2409-4
- ISBN 9781935501763.
- ISBN 9789350298985.
- ^ Also known as the Second Kashmir War.
- ^ Also known as the First Kashmir War.
- ^ Hali, S. M. (2011). "Operation Gibraltar - an unmitigated disaster?". Defence Journal. 15 (1–2): 10–34 – via EBSCO.
- ISBN 978-1-4008-5819-4.
The transfer of American arms under these two pacts included.. Patton.. Starfighter...Sabre...Canberra...estimated about $700 million.
- ^ "The Double Game". The New Yorker. 8 May 2011. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
- ^ ISBN 1-4289-8189-6, DIANE Publishing, pp 235, 238
- Islamic prophet Muhammad, the founder of Islam
- ISBN 1-86064-898-3, 2003
- ^ The Jammu and Kashmir conflict Overview by Meredith Weiss 25 June 2002 – Hosted on Yale University
- ^ The Fate of Kashmir International Law or Lawlessness? By Vikas Kapur and Vipin Narang Stanford Journal of International Relations, Stanford University
- Malaysia Sun21 September 2007
- ISBN 0-7656-1497-9., pp 49
- ^ Matinuddin, Kamal. "Operation Gibraltar revisited". Opinion archive. The News International Pakistan. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 8 July 2007.
- ^ ISBN 1-86508-119-1.
- ^ a b Karim, Major General Afsir (retd) (19 September 2005). "The 1965 War: Lessons yet to be learnt". The Rediff Special. Rediff.com India Ltd. Retrieved 8 July 2007.
- ^ Grand Slam — A Battle of Lost Opportunities by Major (Retd.) Agha Humayun Amin, Defence Journal (Pakistan), September 2000
- ^ Sehgal, Ikram. "GIBRALTAR-2". Defence Journal (reproduced from The Nation newspaper). Dynavis (Pvt) Ltd. Retrieved 8 July 2007.
- ^ My Frozen Turbulence in Kashmir (7th Edition), pp 409
- ^ Faruqui, Ahmad. "Remembering 6th of September 1965". Pakistan Link. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 8 July 2007.
- ^ Almeida, Cyril (30 August 2015). "Gibraltar, Grand Slam and war". Dawn.
- ^ Sawant, VSM, Brigadier Chitranjan (20 July 2015). "Operation Gibraltar". Aryasamaj.
- ISBN 9781849042307.
- ISBN 9788132102014.
- ISBN 978-1-84904-230-7.
- ^ "The 1965 War: Lessons yet to be learnt".
- ^ Khan, M Ilyas (5 September 2015). "Operation Gibraltar: The Pakistani troops who infiltrated Kashmir to start a rebellion". BBC News. Archived from the original on 27 December 2021. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
- ISBN 0-7425-2587-2, p 26
- ^ Mankekar, D. R. (1967). Twentytwo fateful days: Pakistan cut to size. Manaktalas. pp. 62–63, 67. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
- ^ "Nur Khan reminisces '65 war". Pakistan's Dawn (newspaper). 6 September 2005. Retrieved 8 July 2006.
- ^ Khan, M Ilyas (5 September 2015). "Operation Gibraltar: The Pakistani troops who infiltrated Kashmir to start a rebellion". BBC News. Archived from the original on 27 December 2021. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
- ^ Kashmir in the Shadow of War: regional rivalries in a nuclear age By Robert G. Wirsing Pg 158
- ^ "Opinion: The Way it was 4: extracts from Brig (retd) ZA Khan's book". Defence Journal. Dynavis (Pvt) Ltd. May 1998. Retrieved 8 July 2007.
- ^ "Is a Kashmir solution in the offing?". Centre for Aerospace Power Studies. Retrieved 8 July 2007.
- ^ "Brig (Retd) Saeed Ismat, SJ in a Q&A session ("What do you have to say about 1965 war?")". Defence Journal. November 2001. Retrieved 8 July 2007.
- Second Kashmir Warfor a detailed referenced analysis on the post-war fallout.
References
- Abbas, Hassan (2004), Pakistan's Drift Into Extremism: Allah, The Army, And America's War On Terror, M.E. Sharpe, ISBN 0-7656-1497-9
- Musa, Muhammad (1983), My Version: India-Pakistan War 1965, Wajidalis
- Kapur, S. Paul (2017), Jihad as Grand Strategy: Islamist Militancy, National Security, and the Pakistani State, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0-19-976852-3
External links
- Brigadier Shaukat Qadir of PAF on Operation Gibraltar: Battle that never was – Hosted on Rediff.com
- Grand Slam — A Battle of Lost Opportunities by Major (Retd.) Agha Humayun Amin, Defence Journal (Pakistan), September 2000
- Operation Gibraltar — An Unmigitated Disaster?