Hitting Back: India Responds to Pakistani Aggression over Kashmir
- ~7 min
If India claims fresh assaults - Pakistan disputes these allegations - Pakistan Denies Involvement in Recent Aggression Against India
Relations between India and Pakistan continue to spin out of control. Late Thursday night, India reported air strikes by its archenemy on territories within Indian-controlled Kashmir and a military base near the border in Punjab. Pakistan firmly denied these accusations, leaving the claims to be unverified initially.
India's Ministry of Defense declared late in the night that Pakistan had launched rocket and drone attacks on Indian territories and a military station near the Punjab border. These threats were allegedly neutralized with no casualties.
Pakistan hit back, with its Ministry of Foreign Affairs categorically rejecting baseless and reckless claims put forth by Indian media. Pakistan's Information Minister Ataullah Tarar echoed this sentiment, stating that Pakistan has not attacked any targets in the Indian section of Kashmir or beyond the international border. India and Pakistan each administer a part of Kashmir but lay claim to the entire region.
Strained Ties in the Face of Terror
The escalation between the two nuclear powers is believed to have been triggered by a terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir on April 22nd, claiming the lives of 26 people, primarily Indian tourists. New Delhi is implicating Islamabad in this incident, which Pakistan denies and is demanding an unbiased investigation into. A series of clashes and tensions have increased since. On Tuesday, India conducted strikes on several Pakistani targets.
Loud explosions caused panic among residents in Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday night, prompting air raid sirens to go off. According to the newspaper "India Today," a drone hit the airport in the city of Jammu, which houses an air force facility. India has activated its air defense.
Former police chief of the Union Territory, Shesh Paul Vaid, reported "suspected bombardment, grenade fire, or rocket strikes" on the platform X. A complete power outage was recorded in the border area of the territory, according to NDTV. Indian air defense intercepted at least eight enemy rockets.
Pakistan Under Fire
Before the night fell, India reportedly attacked air defense systems at multiple locations within Pakistan. A system in the bustling city of Lahore was destroyed. The military claimed it was responding to Pakistan's attempt to target military objectives in northern and western India, including 15 cities, using drones and rockets. Pakistan contends it has shot down 25 Indian drones since the previous evening.
International concern is growing about the possible deterioration of the crisis on the Indian subcontinent. Germany and the other EU member states pressed Pakistan and India to promptly de-escalate.
Pakistan reported more than 30 deaths and 57 injuries on the Pakistani side due to Indian attacks. Additionally, one person was killed, and five injured (four soldiers), by debris falling from the downed Indian drones the previous night.
The Indian government expressed officials, along with five children, were killed by Pakistani artillery fire along the border. One soldier was reportedly killed as well.
Possible Mediation from Iran
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi continued mediation talks in New Delhi after visiting Pakistan. He met his Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, as reported by Iranian state media. The visit had been scheduled for some time, Araghchi said upon arrival, as economic issues were also on the agenda. Both countries signed three memorandums of understanding, according to the state news agency Irna. "Our region needs peace," he added, noting that Iran is also interested in mediation.
The roots of the current conflict can be traced back to the colonial era. In 1947, Britain granted independence to the Indian subcontinent and partitioned it. This resulted in the predominantly Hindu India and the Muslim state of Pakistan. The violent partition still fuels a bitter rivalry between the two countries. Since independence, both nations have fought three wars against each other, two of which were over Kashmir.
Hint: This article has been updated several times.
- India
- Pakistan
- Explosion
- Jammu
- Conflict
Background information:
Here is a brief overview of the enrichment data added to contextualize the relationships between the parties involved and the geopolitical landscape:
- Enmity and Tensions: India and Pakistan have a complex and contentious relationship, with numerous disputes, including Kashmir, leading to several wars.
- British Imperial Legacy: The partition of India and Pakistan in 1947 and the attendant violence is attributed to the British colonial administration, whose desire for a clean separation led to the creation of two independent nations with deeply conflicting ideologies.
- Recent Tensions: The most recent tensions began in April 2025, escalating quickly due to a series of violent incidents and diplomatic disputes.
- Foreign Involvement: Both Iran and China have weighed in on the conflict, offering mediation and calling for de-escalation, respectively.
- The community policy of maintaining peaceful relations with neighboring states, as urged by many international bodies, seems under strain due to the ongoing war-and-conflicts between India and Pakistan, particularly over Kashmir.
- Controversy ensued over an employment policy issue when Pakistan's Information Minister Ataullah Tarar labelled certain general-news reports as irresponsible, including accusations of Pakistani involvement in a terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir that resulted in human casualties.
- In the face of these political tensions, crime-and-justice took a hit as bombardment, grenade fire, or rocket strikes were reported in various locations, causing general chaos and uncertainty among the civilian population.
- A drone strike aimed at an Indian airport control tower was reported by the newspaper "India Today," adding another dimension to the already complex employment policy implications of this war-and-conflicts.
- The escalation of aggressive actions, including air strikes and the use of drones, along with baseless accusations from both parties, has led to significant casualties, highlighting the dangerous and often baseless nature of politics in regions marred by war-and-conflicts such as Kashmir.
