The Karachi Bar Association on Wednesday condemned in the “strongest possible terms the heinous and unlawful” missile strikes launched by India inside Pakistan, urging the state to respond decisively, militarily and diplomatically until the aggressor is deterred and justice is restored.
In a statement, the KBA said that these strikes deliberately targeted civilian populations in Bahawalpur, Sialkot, Azad Jammu and Kashmir and other regions within the sovereign territory of Pakistan, adding that the resultant loss of innocent civilian lives, including those of women, children and the elderly, constituted not merely an act of military aggression but clear and prosecutable war crimes and crimes against humanity under international law.
"These deliberate attacks violate core principles of international humanitarian law, specifically the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their additional protocols, which expressly prohibit the targeting of civilians and civilian objects during armed conflict," read the statement.
"The actions undertaken by the Indian state reflect a blatant disregard for the most fundamental rules governing the conduct of hostilities, amounting to state-sponsored terror."
The KBA called upon the government of Pakistan to initiate urgent legal proceedings by invoking appropriate provisions of the United Nations Charter, including but not limited to Article 39 and 51, and to raise this matter before the International Criminal Court and other competent international tribunals.
It said that those responsible for planning, authorizing, and executing these attacks must be prosecuted under the principle of nullum crimen sine lege - the international legal standard that no grave crimes shall remain without accountability regardless of the state or its stature.
The lawyers' body further urged the internal legal community, human rights organisations, and bar associations to denounce these unlawful acts, to demand accountability, and to stand in legal solidarity with the people of Pakistan.
"The principle of erga omnes, obligations owed to the international community as a whole requires collective condemnation and concrete legal action against the perpetrators of these atrocities.
"Pakistan has the absolute and sovereign right to respond and it must," it said. "Under Article 51 of the United Nations Charter, a nation under armed attack retains the inherent right to self-defense. Pakistan must now exercise that right with full resolve. This is not a time for restraint it is a time for righteous retaliation. The blood of our civilians demands a response that is strategic, proportionate, and unmistakably strong."
"No nation, no matter how arrogant, can be allowed to bomb children and expect diplomatic silence in return." The KBA said it stood firm behind the armed forces of Pakistan whose professionalism, courage, and swift retaliation had already shown the world that Pakistan was neither passive nor weak.
The Sindh Bar Council (SBC) and the Sindh High Court Bar Association (SHCBA) strongly condemned cowardly and unprovoked attacks by India inside Pakistani territory, resulting in the tragic loss of innocent civilian lives.
Issuing statements, SBC Vice Chairman Shafqat Rahim Rajput and SHCBA President Mohammad Sarfarz Ali Metlo said that this blatant violation of international law and Pakistan’s sovereignty is an unacceptable act of aggression that undermines regional peace and stability.
They saluted the brave and swift response of the Pakistani forces which not only defended the motherland with unmatched valour but also dealt a resounding blow to the Indian Air Force, which suffered loss of its six jet fighters.
They said the legal fraternity stands firmly with the nation in solidarity with the victims of the Indian aggression and reaffirmed its support to the armed forces in safeguarding the Pakistan’s sovereignty.
They called upon the international community to take immediate notice of India’s reckless action and hold it accountable for its violation of international norms. They also demanded resolution of the Kashmir issue in accordance with the United Nations charter preserving the right of self-determination of the Kashmiri people.