{"id":48744,"date":"2025-05-08T06:59:33","date_gmt":"2025-05-08T10:59:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/world\/pakistan-says-it-downed-25-indian-drones-after-attacks-escalate-tensions\/08\/05\/2025\/"},"modified":"2025-05-08T06:59:33","modified_gmt":"2025-05-08T10:59:33","slug":"pakistan-says-it-downed-25-indian-drones-after-attacks-escalate-tensions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/world\/pakistan-says-it-downed-25-indian-drones-after-attacks-escalate-tensions\/08\/05\/2025\/","title":{"rendered":"Pakistan says it downed 25 Indian drones after attacks escalate tensions"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Pakistan\u2019s military says it shot down 25 Indian drones that entered its airspace, as hostilities between the nuclear-armed neighbours<\/a> continue to spiral following Indian air raids on multiple locations within Pakistan\u2019s territory.<\/p>\n

Pakistani Major General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, the military spokesperson, said on Thursday that Indian-made Israeli Harop drones had been deployed to targets including Karachi and Lahore.<\/p>\n

\u201cIndian drones continue to be sent into Pakistan airspace \u2026 [India] will continue to pay dearly for this naked aggression,\u201d Chaudhry said. The military said one civilian was killed and four Pakistani soldiers were wounded as a result of the drone incidents.<\/p>\n

India\u2019s army said it \u201cneutralised\u201d attempts by Pakistan to \u201cengage\u201d several military targets in its northern and western regions on Wednesday night and early Thursday. It targeted air defence systems in several locations in Pakistan, the Ministry of Defence said in a statement, adding that 16 people were reported killed as a result of Pakistani fire.<\/p>\n

Wednesday\u2019s incident came a day after India said it launched precision strikes on what it called \u201cterrorist infrastructure\u201d inside Pakistan. Pakistan said those attacks killed at least 31 civilians<\/a>.<\/p>\n

New Delhi\u2019s operation followed a deadly attack in Indian-administered Kashmir two weeks ago, which killed 26 people. India blamed Islamabad for the attack \u2013 a charge Pakistan strongly denies.<\/p>\n

Escalation on the ground<\/h2>\n

Reporting from New Delhi, Al Jazeera\u2019s Neha Poonia described the situation along the Line of Control (LoC) \u2013 the de facto border in Kashmir \u2013 as deteriorating rapidly. \u201cThere\u2019s been a significant escalation in the manner in which the two armies are engaging,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

The Indian army said 13 civilians had been killed, 59 injured, and one soldier had also died in the exchanges. Villages near the LoC have emptied out, with residents fleeing or sheltering in bunkers.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe haven\u2019t seen this kind of civilian movement in years,\u201d Poonia noted.<\/p>\n

Amid the security crisis, 20 airports across northern India have been closed until at least May 10, severely affecting travel and commercial activity.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Pakistan\u2019s Civil Aviation Authority said Karachi airport will be closed until 6pm (13:00 GMT), while the airports at Islamabad and Lahore were briefly shut \u201cfor operational reasons\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u2018Act of war\u2019<\/h2>\n

From Islamabad, Al Jazeera\u2019s Kamal Hyder reported that the Pakistani military has accused India of endangering civilian and aviation safety with repeated airspace violations.<\/p>\n

Hyder also noted a fresh point of contention: India\u2019s release of water into the Chenab River.<\/p>\n

Islamabad sees this as a breach of longstanding agreements, an \u201cexistential threat\u201d and \u201can act of war\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cPakistan\u2019s parliament, with cross-party consensus, has now authorised a military response,\u201d Hyder said, pointing to mounting fears of a wider war.<\/p>\n

After Wednesday\u2019s strikes, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif vowed to retaliate, raising fears that the two countries could be headed toward another all-out conflict.<\/p>\n

Saudi Arabia and Iran have sent their foreign ministers to New Delhi and Islamabad in a bid to mediate. Meanwhile, the Indian government has convened an all-party meeting to present its assessment of the situation.<\/p>\n

\u2018Pakistan will respond\u2019<\/h2>\n

As India and Pakistan both accuse each other of provocation, analysts suggest Pakistan is under pressure to deliver a strong response to India\u2019s actions.<\/p>\n

\u201cIndia\u2019s limited objectives are met,\u201d said Happymon Jacob, director of the Council for Strategic and Defence Research in New Delhi, speaking to Al Jazeera. \u201cPakistan has a limited objective of ensuring that it carries out a retaliatory strike to save face domestically and internationally. So, that is likely to happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jacob predicted the exchange may evolve into a few rounds of cross-border missile or artillery fire, similar to past confrontations.<\/p>\n

Security analyst Hassan Khan told Al Jazeera that the Pakistani government and military are under pressure to respond decisively.<\/p>\n

\u201cPakistan will respond and the people expect that response to be harder than what the Indians have done,\u201d he said from Islamabad. Khan predicted Pakistan could target multiple Indian installations using missiles while avoiding crossing the LoC.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Pakistan’s military says it shot down 25 Indian drones that entered its airspace, as hostilities between the nuclear-armed neighbours continue to spiral