Pakistan develops armed drone, test-fires laser-guided missile

RAWALPINDI: Pakistan on Friday successfully tested its indigenously-built armed drone ‘Burraq’ and test-fired laser-guided missile ‘Barq’.
Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) General Raheel Sharif witnessed the tests on static and moving targets with an impressive pinpoint accuracy.The all-weather drone and laser-guided missile have multiplied the capability against terrorists, said an ISPR press release.
Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif and Army Chief General Raheel Sharif congratulated the nation on the successful test-firing of the drone and laser-guided missile.In a message, Nawaz appreciated the armed forces as well as the scientists and engineers who contributed towards the indigenous development of state-of-the-art drone and missile. He said attaining the milestone of drone capability would add a new dimension to the country’s defence.
The COAS commended engineers and scientists for their untiring efforts to acquire the state-of-the-art technology and put Pakistan in a different league.General Raheel termed the testing of Burraq and Barq a great national achievement and a momentous occasion.
“It is a force multiplier in our anti-terror campaign and operations,” said General Raheel. Congratulating the nation, the scientists and technicians involved in the development of the drone, the army chief said: “Let’s join hands to take Pakistan forward in respective fields.” —APP
AFP adds: Pakistan successfully tested a home-made armed drone and a laser-guided missile on Friday, the military said, taking it a step closer to acquiring the technology it has long demanded from the United States.
The US has run a controversial drone programme against militant hideouts in northwestern tribal areas bordering Afghanistan since 2004. Pakistan officially opposes the missile strikes by the US drones, terming them a violation of its territorial sovereignty and has long asked the US to give them the technology required to run their own programme.
The tests of the drone, called “Burraq”, which translates as “flying horse”, and the missile “Barq”, or “lightning”, were watched by Army chief General Raheel Sharif, military spokesman Major General Asim Bajwa said on Twitter on Friday.
Pakistan has been battling terror groups in its semi-autonomous tribal belt since 2003, but stepped up its fight last June when it launched a major military offensive.
The US has carried out a series of drone strikes in the tribal regions over the last 10 months.
According to the independent Bureau of Investigative Journalism, the CIA has carried out 413 drone strikes in Pakistan since 2004, frequently prompting protest from the government and civil groups.