The Yadgar-i-Fatah monument, built to honour Pakistan’s martyrs and commemorate Marka-i-Haq, was inaugurated by President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in Islamabad on Thursday night, on the eve of the country’s 80th Independence Day.
President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) and Chief of the Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir, Chief of the Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Zaheer Ahmad Babar Sidhu and Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Naveed Ashraf were in attendance and stood for the national anthem, played by a military band.
Foreign diplomats, military attaches, officers of the three services and other senior officials were also in attendance.
‘Guarantor of peace’
Addressing the ceremony, Prime Minister Shehbaz congratulated the nation on Independence Day and said that under Quaid-i-Azam’s leadership, “we entered the realm of freedom from the darkness of slavery. Our elders sacrificed their lives and property”.
“Yadgar-i-Fatah symbolises our resolve and determination and the domination of our armed forces over the enemy,” he added.
The premier also congratulated the nation on Marka-i-Haq and paid tribute to Field Marshal Munir for his leadership during the conflict, as well as Air Chief Marshal Sidhu and Admiral Ashraf.
“Under his leadership, we defeated the enemy,” PM Shehbaz said.
Paying tribute to the architects and engineers who designed the monument, the premier expressed appreciation for its sleek design and eight-month completion time.
“Its completion in eight months would not have been possible if the field marshal hadn’t invested his deep interest,” PM Shehbaz added.
“This is not just a monument of blocks, but a tribute to the martyrs who sacrificed their lives to defend the nation. That triumph is the victory of our army and our people, and this is our pride.”
He noted that Pakistan wants peace, not war, and that desiring peace should not be perceived as a sign of weakness.
“With dignity and determination, we are resolute for peace,” the premier stated, adding that Pakistan had been recognised as a “guarantor of peace” in the region.
“If anyone challenges Pakistan’s sovereignty and defence, they will receive an even stronger reply than in May 2025,” he warned.
PM Shehbaz noted that after suffering defeat, India suspended the Indus Waters Treaty unilaterally.
“I warn that every drop of water is our red line. If India does not keep on the right track, we will give it a direct response,” he further warned.
Speaking about the future of the country, PM Shehbaz recognised that doors needed to be opened for the younger generation.
“We need to incorporate the latest technology to advance in the journey of our economic progress. We need to develop our human resources so our country will enter into a new phase of progress and well-being,” he stressed.
“We must make a Pakistan where all provinces, including Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir, will advance and develop together.”
A world free of conflict
The premier added that the nation wants to see a world “free from all sorts of conflict”.
“We want to resolve all the issues with justice and in accordance with the UN Charter,” he emphasised, highlighting Islamabad’s role as a mediator between Iran and the US in the ongoing Middle East War.
“The Makkah Agreement is the promise of peace for the Middle East, and a hope of peace for the Muslim world. It is also a message of peace for the whole world,” PM Shehbaz added.
He further stated that Pakistan would keep advocating for the oppressed Palestinians and supporting their right to self-determination, while adding that Islamabad wants peace in Afghanistan, but the use of its soil for cross-border terrorism was “unacceptable”.
“We need to stay united for peace and development. We need to bury the hate and revive the love for each other by forgetting our differences,” he emphasised.
‘We are not a small country to play with’
Taking the podium, President Zardari said that the nation and its armed forces, under Field Marshal Munir’s dynamic leadership, gave a befitting answer to India during the war last year.
“This is in faith to remember what happened, in how many days it happened, where it happened, and this will go down in history for everyone to remember, whether today or the day after,” he said.
He noted that Pakistan’s military response to Indian aggression demonstrated that “we are not a small country for you to play with”.
“We are there as partners to the world, in the … family of countries,” President Zardari added. “And I think, today, even they understand that Pakistan is a national partner.”
He added that the monument reflects the unity of the nation, the strength of the armed forces and the sacrifices given. The president recalled that his own father was called upon by Quaid-i-Azam to fight in the 1948 Kashmir War.
“Most of Sindh, KP, other places, anybody who could carry an arm were there, and they fought against the Indian Army,” he stated. “By the grace of God, we got our Durand Line, our border line, but still so, a lot needs to be done … by us, the people and the public and definitely, the coming generation of Pakistan.”
President Zardari noted that the premier, the CDF, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi were playing a “most commendable and praiseworthy” role.
“We’ve been successful till now. Life comes and goes … we’ve seen tragedies, we’ve seen successes [and] successfully managed to guide our system through,” he added. “I’m not saying there would not be weaknesses; there always are; but there is no nation in the world that can claim they have no weaknesses.”
Prior to the speeches by the country’s leadership, visuals broadcast on television showed a large contingent of personnel from the military, paramilitary forces and police presenting a guard of honour, accompanied by a military band.
Yadgar-i-Fatah monument
The marble monument was completed within eight months and features five archways, which represent the five pillars of Islam, as well as the five pillars of Pakistan itself — the government, the military, the media, the people and the ideology underpinning the nation.
Additionally, they represent the three branches of the military — the Army, the Air Force and the Navy — as well as cyber-defence and space warfare.
As part of the inauguration, a light and sound show was presented with moving images projected directly onto the monument, state television showed. One of the sequences highlighted the history of Pakistan and its military up until Marka-i-Haq.
Iconic moments from the May war were also projected onto the monument, such as when villagers and Punjab Rangers shot at Indian drones together.
Following the light show, Pakistan Air Force fighter jets performed a flypast over the monument, deploying flares in the night sky.
The monument marks Pakistan’s victory over India in a brief military conflict last May.
The conflict with India — starting from the April 22 Pahalgam attack to the end of Operation Bunyanum Marsoos with a ceasefire between the two countries on May 10 — has been called “Marka-i-Haq” (Battle of Truth) by the state.