Indian defence ministry says accidentally fired missile into Pakistan, probe ordered

India's military accidentally fired a missile into Pakistan, New Delhi's defence ministry said on Friday, calling it "deeply regrettable"."In the course of a routine maintenance, a technical malfunction led to the accidental firing of a missile" on Wednesday that landed in "an area of Pakistan", it said in a statement, adding that a high-level inquiry had been ordered. The development comes a day after Director-General of the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Major General Babar Iftikhar revealed that an Indian projectile had entered the Pakistani airspace and fell near Mian Channu in Khanewal district, causing some damage to the surrounding areas.

In response, the Foreign Office said Friday morning Pakistan strongly condemned the unprovoked violation of its airspace by a "super-sonic flying object" of Indian origin. The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) continuously monitored the complete flight path of the flying object from its point of origin near Sirsa in India till its point of impact near Mian Channu, the DG ISPR said.Maj Gen Iftikhar said the PAF initiated requisite tactical actions in accordance with the standard operating procedures (SOPs) and that the flight path of the object endangered many international and domestic passenger flights both in Indian and Pakistani airspace.