PAKISTAN has pledged to set free a fighter pilot who was shot down over Kashmir and beaten by locals after relenting to Indian outrage over him being paraded on TV. Amid a major escalation between the two nuclear powers over the disputed Kashmir region, an Indian pilot was yesterday captured alive after his aircraft was downed by Islamabad. The current conflict at the border dividing Indian and Pakistani territory in Kashmir is the first since a war in 1971 which saw more than 11,500 soldiers killed. Troops on both sides were last night locked in gun battles as officials lashed out online and world leaders urged for peace. This morning huge crowds gathered in Pakistan demanding more aggression while Indian protesters burned Pakistan’s national flag outside its embassy in New Delhi. The heightened tension comes after footage circulated of Indian Air Force pilot Varthaman being savagely attacked by residents in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir shortly after he was blasted out of the sky…
