Drone spotted over Indian High Commission in Islamabad; matter taken up with Pakistan

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A drone was spotted over the Indian High Commission complex in Islamabad late last week, prompting India to lodge a strong protest with Pakistan over the incident, people familiar with the development said on July 2.

They said India considered the incident as a breach of security that triggered concerns in the mission.

The Indian mission has already taken up the issue strongly with the Pakistani authorities through a note verbale.

There was no official comment on the incident yet that came to light amid growing concerns in the security establishment in India after explosives-laden drones were used to carry out an attack on the Jammu Air Force station on June 27.

According to security officials, it was the first instance of suspected Pakistan-based terrorists deploying unmanned aerial vehicles to strike at vital installations in India.

Army Chief General MM Naravane on July 1 said that the easy availability of drones has increased the complexity of security challenges from both state and state-sponsored actors.

A day after the attack on the Air Force station, attempts to target the Ratnuchak-Kaluchak military station in Jammu with drones were also thwarted by soldiers.