NEW DELHI — India has conducted a series of military strikes, dubbed “Operation Sindoor,” targeting sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, two weeks after a deadly attack killed 26 people, including 25 tourists and a local guide, in the resort town of Pahalgam on April 22.
The defence ministry described the strikes as a response to “terrorist infrastructure” responsible for planning and directing attacks, emphasizing that the operations were “focused, measured, and non-escalatory” and avoided Pakistani military facilities.
Pakistan, denying any involvement in the Pahalgam attack, condemned the strikes as “unprovoked” and a “heinous act of aggression.”
According to Pakistan’s military spokesperson, Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, the strikes killed at least 26 people and injured 46 in Muzaffarabad, Kotli, and Bahawalpur.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif vowed that the actions “will not go unpunished.” Pakistan’s military reported shooting down five Indian aircraft and a drone, claims India has not yet addressed.
Meanwhile, 10 civilian deaths were reported, with 45 people getting injured in the border districts of Jammu and Kashmir due to Pakistani shelling.
Pertinently, the April 22 attack, the deadliest in the region in two decades, targeted Hindu men and sparked widespread outrage in the country. Prime Minister Narendra Modi vowed to pursue those responsible “till the ends of the Earth.”
Tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbours have escalated since the attack, with both nations expelling diplomats, suspending visas, and closing border crossings. The strikes follow a pattern of cross-border responses, as seen after the 2016 Uri attack and the 2019 Pulwama bombing on a CRPF convoy.
International leaders, including UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and U.S. President Donald Trump, have urged restraint to prevent further escalation. The global community remains vigilant, given the history of conflict between the two nations, which have fought two wars over Kashmir.
