Tensions between India and Pakistan escalated dramatically after New Delhi launched air strikes, claiming retaliation for a deadly assault in Kashmir. Pakistan, vowing to respond forcefully, declared it would “avenge” those killed by India’s military action, raising fears of an imminent clash between the two nuclear-armed rivals.
The death toll has climbed to at least 43 as the crisis deepens. Pakistani officials reported 31 civilian casualties due to Indian air strikes and cross-border shelling. India, meanwhile, said 12 people were killed by Pakistani fire.
“We make this pledge, that we will avenge each drop of the blood of these martyrs,” stated Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif during a nationally broadcast speech late Wednesday.
In a statement, the Indian army claimed to have demolished nine “terrorist camps” situated in Pakistani territory, launching the strikes two weeks after accusing Pakistan of orchestrating a deadly attack on tourists in the Indian-administered part of Kashmir — an allegation Pakistan firmly rejects.
Pakistani military spokesperson Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry announced that five Indian aircraft had been shot down near the border. Meanwhile, a senior Indian security official, speaking anonymously, confirmed that three of their fighter planes had crashed within Indian territory.
Artillery exchanges between the two countries intensified along the Line of Control, the de facto border in Kashmir, a region both nations claim in its entirety and have fought over in multiple wars since their 1947 independence from Britain.
“There were terrible sounds during the night, there was panic among everyone,” said Muhammad Salman, a resident near a mosque in Pakistan-administered Kashmir that was reportedly targeted.
“We are moving to a safer place… we are homeless now,” said Tariq Mir, 24, who suffered a leg injury from flying shrapnel.
India described its offensive as “focused, measured and non-escalatory,” downplaying accusations of aggression.
In contrast, Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif accused Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi of ordering the attacks for political gain. “Shore up” domestic support, he alleged, warning that Pakistan “won’t take long to settle the score.”
Late Wednesday, Pakistan’s military confirmed that clashes continued along the border and emphasized that a response to the air strikes was imminent.
Chaudhry reaffirmed Pakistan’s position: the country reserves “the right to respond, in self-defence, at time, place, and manner of its choosing,” and noted that the military had received government approval to act.
One of the most severe strikes from India reportedly hit a religious school near Bahawalpur, killing 13 people, according to Pakistan’s military.
An educational and healthcare facility in Muridke, not far from Lahore, was also struck, as was a mosque in Muzaffarabad — the main urban center in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir — resulting in the death of the mosque’s caretaker.
Pakistan’s army added that four children were among the victims of Wednesday’s bombings.
Officials in Islamabad also accused India of targeting a hydroelectric site in Kashmir, damaging a dam, following Indian threats to restrict water flow across the border.
India’s Defence Minister Rajnath Singh defended the military operation, saying it was New Delhi’s “right to respond” after the killing of tourists in Pahalgam last month.
Pakistan has denied involvement in that April 22 attack, in which 26 people — mostly Hindu men — were killed.
United Nations observers arrived in Muzaffarabad on Wednesday to assess the damage to the mosque hit in the Indian strike. Locals sifted through rubble to retrieve torn and dust-covered copies of the Koran.
On the other side of the border, residents of Indian-administered Kashmir fled in fear as Pakistani shells struck their villages.
“There was firing from Pakistan, which damaged the houses and injured many,” said Wasim Ahmed, 29, from Salamabad. “People are fleeing.”
India’s military response to the Pahalgam killings had been widely anticipated, especially after it blamed the Pakistan-based group Lashkar-e-Taiba, which is designated a terrorist organization by the United Nations.
Both sides had exchanged heated rhetoric and enacted diplomatic reprisals in the days leading up to the current violence. Pakistan also carried out two missile tests during this period.
India’s military has reported nightly gunfire from across the heavily fortified Line of Control since April 24.
With tensions nearing a boiling point, international figures and governments have urged both countries to exercise restraint.
“The world cannot afford a military confrontation between India and Pakistan,” said the spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
President Donald Trump also weighed in on the situation Wednesday, appealing for an end to hostilities and offering assistance. “If I can do anything to help, I will be there.”
As part of diplomatic efforts to calm the crisis, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi was scheduled to arrive in New Delhi on Wednesday night, after a prior visit to Islamabad, as Tehran seeks to broker peace.
The Kashmir region has endured decades of violence, with rebels in Indian-controlled Kashmir fighting since 1989 to achieve independence or join Pakistan.
India frequently blames Pakistan for supporting these militant groups, accusations Islamabad continues to deny.
Won’t miss either one of them and the fallout will hit China
I cannot beleive Pakistan is doing anything without the tacit approval of China. If any war happens, I think China is behind it.