India’s missile strikes on Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir have killed at least 31 people, including one child, and now the two nuclear-armed powers appear to be on the brink of a major war.
India claimed it targeted “terror camps” linked to the April 22 terrorist attack in the Pahalgam area of India-administered Kashmir. Islamabad has denied it had any role in the attack and said India’s missile strikes hit civilian areas, including a Mosque in Muzaffarabad, the capital of Pakistan-administered Kashmir.
Pakistan has claimed that it shot down five Indian fighter jets and drones, and heavy shelling has been reported across the Line of Control, the de facto border between Pakistani and Indian controlled territory in Kashmir. According to Indian officials, Pakistani shelling has killed seven civilians on the Indian side of Kashmir.
Pakistan is expected to launch a more significant response in the coming days. “Pakistan has every right to give a robust response to this act of war imposed by India, and a strong response is indeed being given,” said Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
Pakistani Defense Minister Khawaja Asif warned of the risk of nuclear escalation. “If India pushes the region toward nuclear war, it will bear the full consequences,” he said.
Indian officials are warning that New Delhi would respond to any retaliation from Islamabad. The risk of escalation will be higher if Pakistan opts for attacks on Indian territory outside of India-administered Kashmir.
India’s missile attacks hit Pakistan’s Punjab province, and, according to CNN, marked the deepest Indian attack inside Pakistan since 1971, before either country had an arsenal of nuclear weapons.
When the news first broke that India attacked Pakistan, President Trump said it was a “shame” and that he hoped it would end soon. “I guess people knew something was going to happen based on a little bit of the past. They’ve been fighting for a long time,” he said. “I hope it ends very quickly.”
