As India considers its response to the suicide car bombing of a paramilitary convoy in the occupied Kashmir that killed dozens of soldiers, a retired military commander. The retired commander, Lieutenant-General D S Hooda, told The Associated Press on Saturday that while "some kind of limited (military) strike (against Pakistan) is more than likely," he hopes for "rethinking and reconciliation" from all sides in the conflict.

The former general, who was in charge of the army's northern command at the frontier with Pakistan in occupied Kashmir and counterinsurgency operations, oversaw India's so-called "surgical strikes" in September 2016. Pakistan denied that the strikes ever occurred, plausibly demanding that India produce evidence to back up the claim. Hooda has since said that the constant hype of "surgical strikes" was unwarranted.

Hooda said that considering the state of affairs in occupied Kashmir, he wasn't surprised by the bombing. "I just hope this all leads to some introspection, some deep thinking and engagement to do everything afresh and rethink what we all should be doing to settle issues once for all," he said.

Copyright Associated Press, 2019