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A Quick Glance

The Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 was a concluding action of short-term fights that took place between
April 1965 and September 1965 between Pakistan and India. The battle began following Pakistan's
Operation Gibraltar, which was designed to infiltrate forces into Jammu and Kashmir to precipitate an
insurgency against Indian rule. India avenged by launching a full-scale military attack on West Pakistan.
The seventeen-day war caused thousands of casualties on both sides and witnessed the largest
engagement of armored vehicles and the largest tank battle since World War II. Hostilities between the
two countries ended after a United Nations mandated ceasefire was declared following diplomatic
intervention by the Soviet Union and the United States, and the subsequent issuance of the Tashkent
Declaration. Much of the war was fought by the countries' land forces in Kashmir and along the border
between India and Pakistan. This war saw the largest amassing of troops in Kashmir since the Partition
of British India in 1947, a number that was overshadowed only during the 20012002 military standoff
between India and Pakistan. Most of the battles were fought by opposing infantry and armored units,
with substantial backing from air forces, and naval operations. The war exposed Pakistan's inadequate
standards of military training, its misguided selection of officers, poor command and control
arrangements, poor intelligence gathering and bad intelligence procedures. In spite of these
shortcomings, the Pakistan Army managed to fight the larger Indian Army. Many details of this war, like
those of other Indo-Pakistani Wars, remain unclear.

The Pre-War
Since the Partition of British India in 1947, Pakistan and India remained in arguing over several issues.
Although the Kashmir conflict was the prominent issue dividing the nations, other border disputes
existed, most notably over the Rann of Kutch, a barren region in the Indian state of Gujarat. The issue
first arose in 1956 which ended with India regaining control over the disputed area. Pakistani patrols
began patrolling in territory controlled by India in January 1965, which was followed by attacks by both
countries on each other's posts on 8 April 1965. Initially involving border police from both nations, the
disputed area soon witnessed intermittent encounters between the countries' armed forces. In June
1965, British Prime Minister Harold Wilson successfully persuaded both countries to end hostilities and
set up a treaty to resolve the dispute. The verdict, which came later in 1968, saw Pakistan awarded 350
square miles (910 km2) of the Rann of Kutch, as against its original claim of 3,500 square miles (9,100
km2).

After its success in the Rann of Kutch, Pakistan, under the leadership of General Ayub Khan, believed the
Indian Army would be unable to defend itself against a quick military campaign in the disputed territory
of Kashmir as the Indian military had suffered a loss to China in 1962 in the Sino-Indian War. Pakistan
believed that the population of Kashmir was generally discontented with Indian rule and that a
resistance movement could be ignited by a few infiltrating saboteurs. Pakistan attempted to ignite the
resistance movement by means of a covert infiltration, codenamed Operation Gibraltar. The Pakistani
infiltrators were soon discovered, however, their presence reported by local Kashmiris, and the
operation ended unsuccessfully.
The War
On 5 August 1965 between 26,000 and 33,000 Pakistani soldiers crossed the Line of Control dressed as
Kashmiri locals headed for various areas within Kashmir. Indian forces, tipped off by the local populace,
crossed the cease fire line on 15 August.

Commander-in-Chief Pakistan Army, General Muhammad Musa visiting the captured Khemkaran
Railway Station, India.

Initially, the Indian Army met with considerable success, capturing three important mountain positions
after a prolonged artillery barrage. By the end of August, however, both sides had relative progress;
Pakistan had made progress in areas such as Tithwal, Uri and Poonch and India had captured the Haji Pir
pass, 8 km into Pakistan-Administered Kashmir.

On 1 September 1965, Pakistan launched a counterattack, called Operation Grand Slam, with the
objective to capture the vital town of Akhnoor in Jammu, which would sever communications and cut
off supply routes to Indian troops. Ayub Khan calculated that "Hindu morale would not stand more than
a couple of hard blows at the right time and place" although by this time Operation Gibraltar had failed
and India had captured the Haji Pir Pass. At 3:30 hours, on 1 September 1965, the entire Chhamb area
came under massive artillery bombardment. Pakistan had launched operation Grand Slam and India's
Army Headquarter was taken by surprise. Attacking with an overwhelming ratio of troops and
technically superior tanks, Pakistan made gains against Indian forces, who were caught unprepared and
suffered heavy losses. India responded by calling in its air force to blunt the Pakistani attack. The next
day, Pakistan retaliated, its air force attacked Indian forces and air bases in both Kashmir and Punjab.
India's decision to open up the theatre of attack into Pakistani Punjab forced the Pakistani army to
relocate troops engaged in the operation to defend Punjab. Operation Grand Slam therefore failed, as
the Pakistan Army was unable to capture Akhnoor; it became one of the turning points in the war when
India decided to relieve pressure on its troops in Kashmir by attacking Pakistan further south. In the
valley, another area of strategic importance was Kargil. Kargil town was in Indian hands but Pakistan
occupied high ground overlooking Kargil and Srinagar-Leh road. However, after the launch of a massive
anti-infiltration operation by the Indian army, the Pakistani infiltrators were forced out of that area in
the month of August.

India crossed the International Border on the Western front on 6 September, marking an official
beginning of the war. On 6 September, the 15th Infantry Division of the Indian Army, under World War II
veteran Major General Prasad, battled a massive counterattack by Pakistan near the west bank of the
Icchogil Canal (BRB Canal), which was a de facto border of India and Pakistan. The General's entourage
itself was ambushed and he was forced to flee his vehicle. A second, this time successful, attempt to
cross the Ichhogil Canal was made over the bridge in the village of Barki, just east of Lahore. These
developments brought the Indian Army within the range of Lahore International Airport. As a result, the
United States requested a temporary ceasefire to allow it to evacuate its citizens in Lahore. However,
the Pakistani counterattack took Khem Karan from Indian forces which tried to divert the attention of
Pakistanis from Khem Karan by an attack on Bedian and the adjacent villages.

The thrust against Lahore consisted of the 1st Infantry Division supported by the three tank regiments of
the 2nd Independent Armoured Brigade; they quickly advanced across the border, reaching the Ichhogil
(BRB) Canal by 6 September. The Pakistani Army held the bridges over the canal or blew up those it
could not hold, effectively stalling any further advance by the Indians on Lahore. One unit of the Indian
Jat Regiment, 3 Jat, had also crossed the Icchogil canal and captured the town of Batapore (Jallo Mur to
Pakistan) on the west side of the canal. The same day, a counter offensive consisting of an armoured
division and infantry division supported by Pakistan Air Force Sabres forced the Indian 15th Division to
withdraw to its starting point. Although 3 Jat suffered minimal casualties, the bulk of the damage being
taken by ammunition and stores vehicles, the higher commanders had no information of 3 Jat's capture
of Batapore and misleading information led to the command to withdraw from Batapore and Dograi to
Ghosal-Dial. This move brought extreme disappointment to Lt-Col Desmond Hayde, CO of 3 Jat. Dograi
was eventually recaptured by 3 Jat on 21 September, for the second time but after a much harder battle
due to Pakistani reinforcements.

Assessment of Losses
India and Pakistan make widely divergent claims about the damage they inflicted on each other and
the amount of damage suffered by them. The following summarizes each nation's claims.

Pakistani
Indian claims Independent Sources
claims

3,000 Indian soldiers, 3,800


Casualties
Pakistani soldiers

2,279
Combat
4,073+ combat sorties combat
flying effort
sorties

59 IAF (official), 43 PAF. In


addition, Indian sources claim 20 PAF, 6075 IAF; Pakistan
19 PAF, 104
Aircraft lost that there were 13 IAF aircraft claims India rejected neutral
IAF
lost in accidents, and 3 Indian arbitration
civilian aircraft shot down

Aerial
17 + 3 (post war) 30
victories

128 Indian tanks, 152


Pakistani tanks captured, 150
Tanks 165 Pakistan
Pakistani tanks destroyed.
destroyed tanks
Officially 471 Pakistani tanks
destroyed and 38 captured
India held
250 sq mi
1,840 km2 (710 sq mi) of
Land area 1,500 sq mi (3,900 km2) of (650 km2) of
Pakistani territory and Pakistan
won Pakistani territory Indian
held 210 sq mi (540 km2) of
territory
Indian territor

References
Rakshak, Bharat. "Page 15" (PDF). Official History. Times of India. Retrieved 14 July 2011.

War Despatches. New Delhi: Lancer International.

Thomas M. Leonard (2006). Encyclopedia of the developing world.

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