'Etched in history': PM Shehbaz says Pakistan cannot be 'intimidated or subdued' as nation marks Marka-i-Haq anniversary

Last year’s confrontation with India, beginning with the April 22 Pahalgam attack and the subsequent military conflict — which resulted in a resounding victory for Pakistan — until the ceasefire on May 10, is now referred to by the state as Marka-i-Haq (Battle of Truth).

“Marka-i-Haq bears testimony that Pakistanis are a peace-loving, yet courageous, resilient, and dignified nation who can neither be intimidated nor subdued by any aggressor,” said the premier in a statement released by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).

The prime minister, expressing his gratitude to the Almighty, said the day commemorates Pakistan’s “valiant stand in adversity” and the “crushing defeat” inflicted upon India.

“The nation pays tribute to its martyrs, their families and the ghazis who stood like a steel wall to defend their homeland,” said the statement.

The premier said the well-coordinated and synchronised response by Pakistan’s armed forces across land, sea, air and cyber domains established Pakistan as an “invincible nation”.

He said Marka-i-Haq is etched in history as an “epic feat of achieving overwhelming dominance over an enemy, bent on unprovoked aggression”.

PM Shehbaz maintained that India was administered a “heavy dose of reality serum to dispel its illusion of invincibility”.

He maintained that there should be no doubt that any aggression to undermine the country will be met with immediate, befitting and full-spectrum response, adding that the nation “stand determined and vigilant to ensure security” along its frontiers.

The premier also paid tribute to Chief of Defence Forces and Chief of the Army Staff Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir for his bold and courageous leadership and Air Chief Marshal Zaheer Ahmed Baber and Navy Chief Admiral Naveed Ashraf for their strategic prudence, added the statement.

“We also salute officers and soldiers of the valiant Armed Forces, who, with unflinching support of the Pakistani nation, inscribed a new chapter in Pakistan-India context,” said the PMO statement.

He maintained that Pakistan clearly manifested its desire for peace during the conflict, while also re-establishing deterrence and safeguarding its security, sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Referring to terrorism in Pakistan, the prime minister said the nation remains “steadfast in our efforts to root out ‘Fitna al Khawarij’ and ‘Fitna al Hindustan’ and take the fight against terrorism to its logical conclusion”.

Fitna al Khawarij is a term the state uses for terrorists belonging to the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan, while Fitna al Hindustan is a term designated by the state for terrorist organisations in Balo­chistan.

On occupied Kashmir, the premier maintained that it remains an unfinished agenda of Partition and strategic stability in the region would remain a distant dream without resolution of the Kashmir issue.

“Strategic stability in South Asia, without the resolution of Kashmir issue, would remain a distant dream which needs to be resolved in accordance with the United Nations resolutions and the aspirations of the Kashmiri people. Pakistan shall continue to stand by the fundamental right of freedom and self-determination of Kashmiri people,” said the statement.

Prime Minister Shehbaz elaborated that a year on, Pakistan is recognised as a responsible nation that “not only knows how to defend itself, but has also emerged as a guarantor of global peace and stability”.

Touching on recent efforts to end the Iran-US conflict, the premier said the country has earned worldwide acknowledgement for its role as a key mediator and its efforts to end the violence.

“Commemorating the sacrifices of our martyrs during Marka-i-Haq, let us pledge to face our adversaries like a ‘Steel Wall’ and work selflessly for the destined glory of this great homeland,” the statement concluded.