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Dozens killed as India, Pakistan clash in worst violence in decades
At least 38 deaths were reported, with Islamabad saying 26 civilians were killed by the Indian strikes and firing along the border, and New Delhi adding at least 12 dead from Pakistani shelling.
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A flare goes up in air over the hill near main town of Poonch district, on May 7, 2025. India said on May 7 it carried out “precision strikes at terrorist camps“ inside Pakistan and Pakistani-controlled Kashmir, days after it blamed Islamabad for a deadly attack on the Indian side of the contested region. (AFP/Punit Paranjpe)
I
ndia and Pakistan exchanged heavy artillery fire along their contested frontier on Wednesday after New Delhi launched deadly missile strikes on its arch-rival, in the worst violence between the nuclear-armed neighbours in two decades.
At least 38 deaths were reported, with Islamabad saying 26 civilians were killed by the Indian strikes and firing along the border, and New Delhi adding at least 12 dead from Pakistani shelling.
The fighting came two weeks after New Delhi blamed Islamabad for backing an attack on the Indian-run side of disputed Kashmir.
The South Asian neighbours have fought multiple wars since they were carved out of the sub-continent at the end of British rule in 1947.
The latest violence exceeds India's strikes in 2019, when New Delhi said it had hit "several militants" after a suicide bomber attacked an Indian security force convoy, killing 40.
The Indian army said "justice is served", reporting nine "terrorist camps" had been destroyed, with New Delhi adding that its actions "have been focused, measured and non-escalatory in nature".
Pakistan Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif accused Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi of launching the strikes to "shore up" his domestic popularity, but said Islamabad had struck back.
"The retaliation has already started", Asif told AFP. "We won't take long to settle the score."
Military spokesman Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said five Indian jets had been downed across the border.
An Indian senior security source, who asked not to be named, said three of its fighter jets had crashed on home territory.
On Wednesday, Turkey urged India and Pakistan to act with common sense amid the military escalation between them, its foreign ministry said, adding India's latest military action created the risk of an "all-out war".
In a statement, the ministry reiterated its support for Pakistan's call for an investigation into an Islamist militant attack that killed 26 in the Indian-administered side of the Himalayan region on April 22.
Also on Wednesday, China expressed regret and concern over Indian strikes on Pakistan, urging both sides to show restraint in response to a major escalation between its nuclear-armed neighbours.
China, which shares land borders with both countries and is a close ally of Pakistan, said it expressed "regret over India's military action this morning" and said it was "concerned about the current developments".
"India and Pakistan are neighbours that cannot be moved apart, and they are also China's neighbours," a foreign ministry spokesperson said in a statement.
"China opposes all forms of terrorism," they said.
