India and Pakistan trade accusations over deadly overnight drone and missile strikes

Tensions between India and Pakistan intensified this week after both countries accused each other of carrying out provocative drone and missile attacks, with New Delhi claiming to have thwarted coordinated Pakistani strikes across multiple cities and Islamabad alleging incursions by Indian drones over its key military areas.

The flare-up has added to an already volatile situation following India’s airstrikes early Wednesday morning on what it called terrorist infrastructure inside Pakistani territory.

According to PTI, Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday told an all-party meeting that at least 100 terrorists were killed in Indian strikes under Operation Sindoor, as it was called, and the count is still ongoing.

India says it neutralised attacks on 16 locations in India

“During the Press Briefing on Operation SINDOOR on 07 May 2025, India had called its response as focused, measured and non-escalatory,” the Indian defence ministry said on Thursday in a statement.

“It was specifically mentioned that Pakistani military establishments had not been targeted. It was also reiterated that any attack on military targets in India will invite a suitable response,” it said.

The statement claimed that on the night of May 7-8, Pakistan launched drone and missile attacks targeting at least 16 locations across its northern and western regions, including Awantipura, Srinagar, Jammu, Pathankot, Amritsar, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, and Chandigarh.

“These were neutralised by the Integrated Counter UAS Grid and Air Defence systems. The debris of these attacks is now being recovered from a number of locations that prove the Pakistani attacks,” it said.

The ministry also said that today morning Indian Armed Forces targeted Air Defence Radars and systems at a number of locations in Pakistan.

“Indian response has been in the same domain with the same intensity as Pakistan. It has been reliably learnt that an Air Defence system at Lahore has been neutralised,” the statement added.

India said Pakistan has also escalated firing across the Line of Control (LoC), using mortars and heavy artillery in the border regions of Kupwara, Baramulla, Uri, Poonch, Mendhar and Rajouri sectors in Jammu and Kashmir.

Indian officials reported that 16 civilians have died in this shelling, including three women and five children, while 59 others were injured, 44 of them in Poonch alone.

“Here too, India was compelled to respond to bring Mortar and Artillery fire from Pakistan to a halt,” it said.

Pakistan says it downed over 2 dozen Indian drones, says India has ‘lost the plot’

In a press conference on Thursday, Pakistan military spokesperson Major General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said India had “apparently lost the plot” and accused New Delhi of staging a “blatant military act of aggression” in sending more than a dozen drones overnight over major cities, including Rawalpindi, where Pakistan’s military has its headquarters.

He said Pakistani air defences had downed over two dozen Indian drones in major urban centres, including Rawalpindi, which houses the army’s headquarters.

He further claimed that a drone incident in Sindh province resulted in the death of one civilian and left four soldiers injured following an aerial confrontation.

“This naked aggression continues and the armed forces are on a high degree of alert and neutralising them as we speak,” he said.

Chaudhry said Pakistan considered the drones to be a “serious provocation” by India and said drone debris was being collected by the armed forces and police

US issues advisory for its citizens in Pak; EU urges nations to act with restraint

Meanwhile, the United States has issued a travel advisory for its citizens in Pakistan, urging them to avoid areas of conflict and, if caught in unsafe zones, to shelter in place.

“The US Department of State continues to remind US citizens of its standing ‘Do Not Travel’ advisory against all travel to areas near the India-Pakistan border and the Line of Control due to terrorism and the potential for armed conflict. The Department’s long-standing “Reconsider Travel” advisory also urges travelers to reconsider travel to Pakistan more broadly.”

“If US citizens find themselves in an area of active conflict, they should leave if it is safe to do so.  If they cannot leave safely, they should shelter in place,” it said.

The UK, China, and Singapore have also issued similar advisories.

The European Union also weighed in, strongly condemning a recent terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, which killed several civilians.

The EU urged both India and Pakistan to avoid further escalation and instead engage in dialogue.

“Terrorism can never be justified. Those responsible must be brought to justice. But states must also act with restraint to prevent more loss of life,” the EU said in a statement.

Pakistan’s foreign minister told Reuters that there have been contacts between the national security advisers of both countries.

However, no formal talks or agreements have been announced, and military action continues on both sides of the border.

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