Tensions between nuclear-armed neighbors India and Pakistan have escalated sharply, with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif claiming that Pakistan responded to Indian missile strikes by shooting down Indian fighter jets, a claim that India has not officially confirmed.
“This was a reply from our side to them,” Sharif said in a televised address to the nation on Wednesday, describing the action as a defensive response following deadly air strikes and cross-border fire.
Pakistan reports that 31 people were killed and 57 injured in the air strikes and shelling across Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir. The attacks allegedly targeted civilian areas near the Line of Control (LoC), the de facto border dividing the disputed region of Kashmir.
India, on its part, says its overnight missile strikes were in retaliation for a recent militant attack in Pahalgam last month that left several Indian tourists dead. New Delhi has accused Pakistan-based groups of involvement, an allegation Islamabad strongly denies.
Meanwhile, India’s army says at least 15 civilians were killed on its side of the LoC due to Pakistani shelling, further intensifying fears of broader conflict.
Kashmir has long been a flashpoint between the two countries, both of which claim the region in full but control parts of it. The area has endured a decades-long insurgency that has claimed thousands of lives, often pulling the two nations to the brink of war.
With both sides trading accusations and casualties mounting, calls for restraint are growing from international observers, urging diplomatic resolution to avoid further bloodshed.
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