Operation Gibraltar 

Operation Gibraltar 

Part of: GS Prelims and Mains II and III – India and Pakistan relations; Security issues 

About: 

• Operation Gibraltar was the codename given to the strategy of Pakistan to infiltrate Jammu and Kashmir, and instigate the locals in starting a rebellion against Indian rule there. 
• Pakistan specifically chose this name to draw a parallel to the Muslim conquest of Spain that was launched from the port of Gibraltar. 

Do you know? 

• In August 1965, Pakistan Army’s troops disguised as locals, entered Jammu and Kashmir from Pakistan with the goal of fomenting an insurgency among Kashmiri Muslims. However, the strategy went awry from the outset due to poor coordination, and the infiltrators were soon discovered. 
• The operation sparked the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, the first major engagement between the two neighbours since the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947.