India has accused Pakistan of launching drone and missile attacks on three of its military installations—allegations firmly denied by Islamabad.
The Indian Army reported it had successfully intercepted and neutralised attempts to target bases in Jammu and Udhampur, located in Indian-administered Kashmir, as well as in Pathankot, Punjab.
Multiple explosions were reported in Jammu city on Thursday evening, plunging parts of the region into a blackout.
Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, in an interview with the BBC, denied any involvement in the attacks. “We deny it. We have not mounted anything so far,” he said, adding, “We will not strike and then deny.”
Earlier the same day, India stated it had launched retaliatory strikes against Pakistan’s air defence systems in response to what it described as Pakistani attempts to hit Indian military targets on Wednesday night.
Pakistan condemned these actions, calling them another “act of aggression” following Indian missile strikes the previous day on sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir.
The latest exchanges have raised alarms globally, with the United Nations and several world leaders urging both sides to de-escalate. The situation is now being described as the most serious confrontation between the two nuclear-armed neighbours in over two decades.
India has said its initial strikes on Wednesday were part of Operation Sindoor, targeting nine terrorist infrastructure sites in retaliation for the April 22 militant attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, which left 26 civilians, mostly tourists, dead.
New Delhi has blamed the Pakistan-based militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba for the massacre, alleging the attackers were Pakistani nationals. Islamabad has denied any involvement.
Indian-administered Kashmir has been the site of a prolonged insurgency against Indian rule, resulting in thousands of deaths.
The region, long disputed between India and Pakistan since the 1947 partition of British India, remains a persistent flashpoint and has been the trigger for two of the three wars fought by the nations.
Amid Thursday’s heightened military activity, both nations traded further allegations of cross-border attacks. Pakistan’s military spokesperson, Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, accused India of sending drones to several areas, including Lahore, Gujranwala, Chakwal, Rawalpindi, Attock, Bahawalpur, Mianwali, Chor, and near Karachi.
He reported that one civilian was killed in Sindh province and four soldiers were injured in Lahore. The U.S. consulate in Lahore advised staff to shelter in place following the drone reports.
India, in turn, said its actions were in direct response to Pakistan’s attempts to engage military targets in northern and western regions.
A statement from India’s Defence Ministry claimed that an air defence system in Lahore was neutralised—an assertion denied by Pakistan.
No independent verification of either country’s claims has been made.
India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri stated in a press briefing in Delhi, “Our intention has not been to escalate matters. We are only responding to the original escalation.”
Meanwhile, casualties on both sides continue to rise. According to Pakistani officials, 31 people have been killed and 57 injured in Indian air strikes and artillery fire since Wednesday.
India has reported 16 civilian deaths, including three women and five children, due to Pakistani shelling across the Line of Control.
Late on Wednesday, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif vowed to retaliate for the deaths caused by Indian strikes. He also claimed that Pakistan had downed five Indian fighter jets—a statement India has not responded to publicly.
Following Thursday evening’s explosions in Jammu, Indian military sources told local media that similar blasts were also reported in Akhnoor, Samba, and Kathua, adding to growing fears of a broader military conflict.
